Life of Luxury
by poisoncade
Summary: Eli and Clare have it all, a great house and jobs, but now that their kids are growing up, lemons keep popping up. Will Clare and Eli's marraige stay strong or not? My first fanfic.
1. Chapter 1

**Eli's POV**

Clare looked beautiful. She always looked beautiful, of course, but today there was something else about her. A different sense, a glow. Maybe it was the bulge pushing out her stomach, or her swollen wrists or ankles. I don't know. I wrapped my arms around her waist. Or should I say that I tried to, and kissed her. She smiled up at me and murmured "Today's the day." I grinned. The due date. May 17th. It had finally arrived.

"It better be, if you hold that kid in there any longer you're going to explode."

"Eli! The baby isn't fat! It's just big-boned that's all. I feel bad for the baby, stuck in that tight hot space with no place to go. Poor baby." She pouted, looking down at her stomach and rubbing her belly affectionately.

I smiled. The baby wasn't even born yet, and she was already being overprotective. We didn't know the sex of the baby, Clare didn't want to know until the little guy or girl got here. The doctor's had scared us to death by talking about all the things that could go wrong.

I leaned over and kissed her strawberry lips again. "Clare, baby, it's going to be fine. Besides, the kid will have plenty of breathing room when it gets here."

"Elijah Goldsworthy, do not call our child an it. Besides, we haven't even discussed names."

Names. Why was it always about names? Clare smirked suddenly. "If it's a boy, his name is going to be EJ. Elijah Junior."

Oh, hell no. Not my kid. I shook my head. "Uh-uh, baby. It's going to be named Marcus, we talked about this."

Clare opened her mouth to talk and then was suddenly gasping for air. "Eli!" she cried out. My arms were still wrapped around her, so whenever her knees gave out I caught her. "What's wrong baby?" I asked, my voice dripping panic. "'Baby." She hissed, trying to breathe through clenched teeth. "I'm here, what's wrong?" I asked, confused. "The baby!" Clare yelled as she held her stomach.

*Three hours later*

"Push, Clare!" I urged her. My wife was screaming in agony. "Eli, it hurts!"

"I know, baby, I know! C'mon, just a few more and this will all be over!" I was sweating, Clare was too. Her eyes were wide in pain and panic.

"Hey." I murmured gently, looking into those big ocean eyes. "Everything's going to be okay." Clare nodded, and gasping, she pushed again. She screamed.

"The baby's crowning." The doctor said in a monotone voice. "One more push like that one and you'll have a baby." The doctor said. Clare pushed again, and a wet, beautiful baby slipped into the doctor's hands. The doctor smiled, and motioned for me to cut the cord as he proudly announced "It's a…!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Eli's POV **

"It's a…girl!" the doctor said. Shock rippled through my body, and then a flood of warmth and pride. A girl. A daughter. Clare's joyful laughter brought me back to reality just as the doctor was wrapping my baby in a pink blanket. Her cries ripped through the air, and tears swarmed down my cheeks. My baby.

The nurse gently put her in Clare's outstretched arms and the baby waved her fists gently, looking around at the world with her green eyes. "Eli! She has your eyes!" "And your lips." I murmured gently, staring at the baby in awe. She was beautiful. I gently placed a kiss on Clare's forehead. "You did so good, baby." I said and then leaned down and kissed the baby's forehead. "What are we going to name this little ray of light?" I said almost giggling at my comparison. Clare's hair stuck to her forehead from sweat, except for one cinnamon swirl headed down towards the baby's face. The baby lifted her hand and touched it and Clare cooed. She leaned down and kissed her face, and then looked at me. "Light." She said suddenly. "What?" I asked, my glance barely flickering away from my baby's face. "You said she was a ray of light. Maybe we should name her something that means light." Clare's face looked hopeful and I nodded. "We'll look up some names. I promise." I placed my hand on my baby's pale perfect skin. She was beautiful. Her chubby cheeks, her dark eyebrows traced gently over her jade green eyes. "Jade." I said. Now it was Clare's turn to look at me. "Her name is Jade." "But I thought that we were going to name her after light." Clare said. "Her middle name. Please, Clare." I pleaded. Jade was the perfect name for her. Not as formal as Clare would have wanted, but not completely punk rock either. Then Clare smiled. "Jade." She considered. She looked down at the baby, who smiled. "Do you like that? Is Jade a good name?" she asked and the baby's grin widened. She looked up at me "Alright. Jade it is." And everything was perfect.

I called Adam and asked him to do an internet search for Jade's middle name. He laughed, saying that he would but that Fiona was mad that we hadn't named the baby after her. I grinned "Don't worry man, there'll be more." Adam said he'd print out the list of names, and give them to us. They were coming to the hospital in an hour. I walked down to the nursery, and looked at my baby through the glass. She was asleep, but she was beautiful. Her lips were the exact shape and shade of Clare's, and even though her eye color was mine, the shape of her eye and the curl of her eyelashes belonged to Clare. There was a tiny wisp of dark hair on her head, but that was probably going to change. Jade Goldsworthy. I liked it. And then I walked down the hall and into Clare's room. "Clare?" I called, looking at the empty bed. "Eli!" she called from the bathroom. I raced in, panic shooting down my spine as I opened the bathroom door and gasped at what I saw. "Clare!" I cried and rushed over to help her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Eli's POV**

"Clare!" I cried out in shock as my wife tried to stop the flow of blood from in between her legs. I hit the nurse assistance button and held her up as rivers flowed down her legs. Clare was pale, and her eyes were wide with fear. "Ellliii…" she whined. "Oh my God Clare." I said, holding her up. A nurse rushed in. "What's wrong?" she asked, and they she saw Clare. "First time parents?" she said, looking at me. "Yeah!" I said, panicky, what did that have anything to do with it. And why was she so calm?

She gently helped Clare back to her bed, as I helped support her. "This is normal. I'm sorry; I thought someone had told you. Whenever you had a baby, your body stretches, and right now it's trying to get back to normal, whenever you stretch out you'll bleed." Clare stared at her as if she'd spoken Greek, and then finally understood. "Oh." She murmured, her face turning tomato red. Damn, I didn't want her to feel embarrassed. "I-I'm sorry." The nurse smiled gently. "Don't be honey, I don't blame you. Doctors never told me just how messed up my body would be after either. Let me go get you a pad and a change of clothes." Clare's blush, if possible, got redder. I shuffled my feet, waiting for the nurse to leave so that way I could hold her.

The nurse walked out of the room and I kissed my blue eyes' forehead. "Thank God you're alright." I murmured. She smiled slightly. "How's Jade?" she asked, and the devotion was practically dripping from her voice. I smiled then. Jade. She was easily the most beautiful thing in this world, besides Clare of course. "Perfect, as always. It's incredible; my whole aspect of the world has changed. I can't drive down the street without worrying about her. I mean, what if we're in an accident? What if she gets hit by a car?" Clare looked terrified at the possibilities and I immediately backtracked. "And I thought, and I _knew _that I would never let anything happen to this child." Clare's blue ocean eyes filled with tears. "Oh Eli." She said. "Cheesy, I know." I replied. Clare shook her head. "No. Perfect." I grinned just as the nurse walked in and handed Clare her clothes, and a bundled package that must be a pad. I blushed slightly, awkwardly moving my eyes away. "Thank you." Clare said to the nurse. "No problem." The nurse left, and Clare left to go to the bathroom. "Uh-uh. Not by yourself, blue eyes." I gently walked in with her and she blushed. "Eli…Okay, but turn around." She said, smiling slightly. I turned gently, but I could see her in the mirror. She was leaning against the wall as she took her clothes off and I wanted to kiss her whenever she took of her shirt. My eyes widened and I almost gasped when I saw her bra. Oh, duh. Of course her breasts would have gotten bigger. No wonder, she'd been breastfeeding the baby earlier. I noticed how her stomach had stretch marks, and Clare frowned when she saw them, as if by glaring at them they would peel off her skin. Did she really think she was any less beautiful?

She pulled off her pants and I looked away. Then, a few moments later, her arms were wrapped around my neck from behind, her hands gently trailing over my shirt. "Elliijjaahh..." she purred. I grinned. Clare's sexy voice. She kissed the back of my head. One of her hands pulled back and ran it through my hair. She looked at my reflection in the mirror, our eyes meeting. "Did you like what you saw?" I twirled around gently with Clare in my arms, and kissed her. "You know I did." I gently pushed up against her and she winced. I instantly set her down and apologized. "Just a little while, then we can do that." Clare said. "Sorry I got you all worked up." I shrugged. "Don't worry about it." I replied. She grinned. "You're still wearing the same clothes." I looked down. And, sure enough, I was. It had been two days since she went into labor and I was still wearing the same clothes. She made me go home and get new ones and a few outfits for her as well. She also made me finish the crib, which was a royal pain. When I walked back into the hospital, Adam was waiting. "Hey new father." He said, grinning. There was a gleaming satisfaction in his eyes, and I knew why. Fiona and Adam's adopted daughter was going to be born next week.

He had a sheet of paper in his hand. "Here you go, man, all the names that have been traced back to light." Fiona whirled around the corner and hugged me. "Congratulations!" she squealed. "Thank you Fiona!" I replied, hugging her back. "So, picked out a name for the baby? We'll have to bring the kids over for a play date soon." Adam and I both snickered. "She's not even born yet, Fiona, chill out." Adam cautioned. "Don't tell me to chill out, Adam. I'm going to have a daughter in a week. I'm just looking forward to it. Look at the names, Eli. Which ones do you like?"

Soon enough, I was with Clare looking through the names as Adam held Jade in his arms. I smiled. Adam and Fiona were the godparents, of course. Darcy was furious we hadn't picked her, but we made it up to her. We promised that the next child we had, she could pick its middle name. Me and Clare both stopped at the same time. "That one." Clare said. "It's perfect." I agreed. I picked Jade out of Adam's arms, Adam frowning, and held her to me as I wrapped my arm around Clare. Yes. Everything was perfect.


	4. Chapter 4

**Eli's POV**

I smiled down at my baby, she was perfect. "She's wonderful." Clare murmured. I looked at her and said "Of course she is. She has you for a mother." Clare's face morphed into shock. "So…I should be worried you're her father, shouldn't I?" I laughed and wrapped my arm around her. "She'll be going to her first screamo concert soon." Clare laughed. Adam tapped his foot impatiently, wanting to hold her.

I kissed Jade's forehead and handed her to Adam. "Hey Jade," he crooned. His arms had made an awkward cradle, and Fiona snatched the baby out of his hands. "Like this." She insisted, holding the baby correctly. "This should be good practice for you; you're going to have your own soon." Fiona stated bluntly, and then tilted her head to hold the baby. "Her name is so beautiful, it fits her so well." Fiona told us, her bright eyes flickering upwards for a moment to look at us. Me and Clare both smiled. "Jade Aliana Goldsworthy." I murmured. I liked it. "Kind of preppy, though." Adam muttered as he leaned over Fiona's shoulder to look at Jade.

They would be such great parents. "You got a problem with her name machismo?" I growled at him. He shook his head. "No man, it's cool. It's the perfect mixture of emo rebel and christened saint." I smiled slightly and glanced back at Clare. She kissed me, and her perfect lips made my heart skip a beat. A nurse walked in and mine and Adam's head turned. The girl could be called pretty, if you were into fake. It took all my self-control not to curl my lip. Was that much make up _legal? _

"Hello, Mrs. Goldsworthy. And you must be Elijah Goldsworthy?" She said, pronouncing my full name with a seductive tone. God, she was pathetic. "Yes, I am." I said. Clare glared at me suddenly, and I realized I was still staring at the nurse. "Well, ah, Mrs. Goldsworthy," she said the name like it was painful in her mouth. "You and your child can leave this afternoon. " Then she turned to me, her blonde hair falling over her shoulders. Her grey eyes twinkled with lust. Uh-oh. "But, you, Mr. Goldsworthy, could stay as long as you want." She said this with a sly smile on her face.

She briskly walked out of the room and Clare glared at me. "What?" I asked. Clare's blue eyes filled with anger and she hissed "You know what." I stood up quickly. I knew all too well what pregnancy hormones did to Clare. I swallowed. "Clare, I love you, you know that. She's so fake. It's disgusting, not pretty." Clare seemed to believe me, and then smiled. "We can take the baby home today?" I grinned. I would love to take the baby home. "Yes!" I threw my hands up in the air and spun around. Having a kid got me energetic.

I walked over to Clare and pulled her out of bed. "Yeah, c'mon, we have to pack."Me and Clare were like little kids, giddy and excited. As well we should be. Just then my phone rang. I pulled it out of my black skinny jeans and flipped it open. "Hello?" I asked, as I shoved Clare's clothes into her bag. "Hey, baby boy! How's the baby?" I smiled, I loved my mom. Cece and Bull Frog had flown down to NYC for a big radio conference. I had texted them pictures of Jade and they had flown right back up. "Perfect, as always. We came up with a middle name. Jade Aliana Goldsworthy, 9 pounds 4 ounces." I said. Clare smiled at me as she rocked our baby, Fiona and Adam waving as they walked out the door. I waved back.

"That's wonderful! We'll be at the hospital soon." Cece said. "Actually, Mom, we're going home." "Alright, we'll we see you there then. Can I talk to Clare?" I handed the phone to Clare, who took it, stuck it under her ear and immediately started talking. "Oh, Cece, she is so beautiful. You told me what it felt like having children and I didn't believe you. It hurt so badly, but it was worth it!" I shook my head gently, smiling to myself. Clare was wonderful. And she admired that baby so much. Jade was so beautiful.

I went down to Morty, and put the bag in the trunk. I looked in the backseat and checked to make sure that the car seat was in right. It was pick and silver, with silver flowers curling over the headrest of the car seat. Fiona had given it to us on Clare's baby shower. Along with a few other things: toys, pacifiers, a baby bag, and all the things we needed. I scooped up the matching diaper bag, filled with diapers, wipes and pacifiers and walked towards the hospital entrance. It was a beautiful day; it was sunny, which was almost strange for Canada. Not a cloud in the sky. Would the sun hurt the baby? I looked back at Morty, and that thing that people put up on the windows for babies was on him. Good. Thank God Clare remembered these kinds of things. Clare was waiting for me, wearing my Dead Hand shirt and denim shorts. She was holding Jade in her arms, who had been dressed in a pink onesie with an elephant on it. I handed her the diaper bag and picked up Jade. I held her to my chest, and took the bag from Clare.

I signed some forms from the nurse, Janine, who kept flirting with me. I also ignored the number she scrawled next to where it asked me for my name. Then me and my family walked out of the hospital, into the warm perfect air.


	5. Chapter 5

**Eli's POV**

Just as me and Clare pulled into the drive way, the baby started to cry. "Hey, hey beautiful, don't cry." I soothed as I opened my door and, twisting around, flipped Jade's door opened. The baby was wailing, and her head was twisting a little. I gently unbuckled her car seat and scooped her up. Her crying immediately stopped and she settled comfortably in my shoulder. Clare stepped out of Morty and smiled at me. "Well, you seem to have the magic touch." She said. I grinned and searched for my key. I gently walked up the steps to our house and unlocked the door. Yes, we had a house. Me and Clare went looking the second we found out she was pregnant; there was no way we could raise a kid in an apartment.

I walked into the living room, bouncing Jade on my shoulder. She liked it, and she made a funny sound. I pulled her from my shoulder and looked at her. She smiled. "Clare, she's smiling." Clare was right behind me and giggled. "Yes, she is." Jade was so beautiful. Literally, words couldn't describe it. She was miniature of Clare, with my hair and eyes. She had just a whisper of curls on her head, but they were silky and healthy. Jade was…mesmerizing. That's the only way I could think to describe it. It was almost the same admiration and devotion I felt for Clare. She squirmed and I put her back in the cradle of my arms. Her eyes half-closed and then shut. Her breathing slowed, and she fell asleep. Clare just stared at her in awe. I glanced at Clare and murmured "Do you want to watch as I put Jade in her crib for the first time?"

Clare nodded, and we both walked up the carpeted steps. We walked past the bathroom, and our room. On the other side, there was Jade's room. It was painted a light lavender color, a mixture of pink and blue. We hadn't known if it was going to b a girl or a boy, so we just mixed both. There was a white crib on one side of the room, left of the window. There was a changing table on the other side of the room, with a toy box on one side and a bookshelf on the other. The bookshelf was filled with books for little kids, and a few toys on the ends to hold them up. On the top two shelves of the bookshelf, and underneath the changing table, were diapers, wipes, and extra blankets.

Me and Clare stood next the crib, which was pushed against a wall, and I gently laid Jade down. We watched her sleep silently for a while. The sun was about to set, and the sunlight streamed through the window curtains. They were white, but like gauze, see through. Jade pulled her hands over her head, almost touching her ears. My heart swelled, she was beautiful. Clare looked at me, and there were tears in her eyes. "Jesus, she's so beautiful." She murmured, and then covered her mouth with her hands, trying to hold back sobs.

I wrapped my arms around Clare and kissed her tears away. "Did Miss Saint Clare just curse? Call the newspapers." She laughed, tears still flowing freely from her eyes. "She's just perfect, you know?" Clare said. I nodded. I did know. Jade was suddenly joining Clare as the center of my world. I kissed Clare, wrapping my arms around her waist. She kissed me back, and I felt fireworks shoot off in my head. The doorbell rang and me and Clare walked downstairs and opened the door. Clare kept turning her head back to see Jade. "Clare! Baby boy!" Cece crowed as she wrapped her arms around Clare. I smiled as Bull frog hugged me. I glanced over at my mother. "Should you still be calling me baby boy, now that I have a baby myself?" I asked, smirking. Clare rolled her eyes. "Speaking of which, where is the little one?" Cece asked.

I gently grabbed Clare's hand and nodded towards upstairs. We all went back up the steps and Cece and Bullfrog stood over the crib, jaws dropped. "She's beautiful." Cece murmured. Then the house phone rang. Me and Clare looked at each other, our house phone never rang. I ran downstairs and picked up the phone before it went to voice mail. "Hello?" I said. "Is this Elijah Goldsworthy?" A familiar voice said. "Yes it is." I replied. The voice hesitated and then said "Well, Mr. Goldsworthy, there seems to have been some kind of mistake with your wife and daughter…"


	6. Reviews!

I NEED THE REVIEWS! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! I NEED THEM! PLEASE, ANY THOUGHTZ OR SUGGESTIONS ARE APPRECIATED! (THIS IS THE ONLY ONE OF THESE THEY'RE WILL BE.)


	7. Chapter 6

**Eli's POV**

"What mistake? What are you talking about?" I asked, and fear shot through me. What could possibly be wrong? "Well, they were supposed to be released tomorrow. They can stay home now that they are already there, but we do need to do the follow-up exam. It was scheduled for tomorrow. Would you mind bringing in your wife and daughter tomorrow at noon?" I sighed in relief. Thank God that was all it was. "Sure." I told the girl on the phone. "I'll be sure to." Then the girl's voice changed. I suddenly recognized it. Janine, the slutty nurse from the hospital. "Mr. Goldsworthy, perhaps you should come in by yourself for a private check-up." She purred. My stomach got nauseas. Did she really think I would risk my relationship with Clare? Was she out of her mind? I was sick of this. What she said in our hospital room, the number on the form, and now this. I was going to tell her what I thought.

"Look, lady, I'm not interested. If you think I would ever even think of looking at you when I have beautiful, incredible wife, you need to get your head checked. Are you crazy? I'm married and I even have a child with the one and only love of my life, Clare. Get over it." I slammed the phone down, but not before I heard Janine's gasp. I stomped back up the steps, and I was steaming. How dare she call _my _house, and ask for a "private check-up"? Was she really that desperate? Clare noticed my anger whenever I walked into Jade's room. "What's wrong?" she asked, and Bullfrog looked up from Jade's face for a moment, his eyebrows raising. I explained it to them what had happened on the phone, and at the hospital and my parents laughed. Clare looked pissed, of course. "What'd you tell her?" Clare asked, her voice tightened. I told her my exact words and she smiled. "She better figure out to keep her hands off my man." She giggled, wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing me. I smiled, and then the baby started crying. I pulled away from Clare and sighed. Welcome to parenthood.

A half an hour later, after the food-pizza- had arrived, Jade finally calmed down. She loved Cece already, holding onto her. Cece was enjoying it to. Bullfrog was eating pizza, but watched Jade with true interest. The baby was attached to me and Clare. She would cry until someone handed her over to one of us. But, at the moment, she seemed to enjoy Cece's arms just fine. Clare looked saddened for a moment, but took the baby upstairs so that way she could feed her and change her diaper. I noticed something though, and as my parents were eating, I told them I was going to check on Clare. I walked upstairs into the baby's room. Clare had put together the rocking chair, which I had forgotten to do, and had it turned to the wall so I couldn't see her. I leaned over the back of the chair and kissed her head. "What's wrong, blue eyes?" I murmured into her cinnamon curls. She was crying, I realized. I refused to look farther than her face, determined not to violate her privacy.

"You...Your parents are here for you. I called my parents, and all they said was congratulations. They didn't even want to see her, especially dad." She managed to get out, her voice breaking. My heart felt shattered. Randal, god I hated him so much. He treats Clare so badly, and she never did anything to deserve it. I kissed her head again. "Honey, they'll meet her, I promise. Didn't Helen say she'd stop by in a couple of days?" Helen, Clare's mother, had told Clare that she would be up to see her on Wednesday. Today was Sunday; Jade had been born on Friday. Clare nodded, but was ready to burst into tears. "But only because I begged her! She didn't even want to-"her voice broke off and she cried. She carefully watched the baby through watery eyes, and readjusted Jade's head.

"She'll be here. And as for Randal, my parents will certainly make up for him." I looked at her hopefully. "I'm sorry I forgot to make the chair." I told her. She shook her head, wiping her tears away as she pulled Jade gently away. "It's okay. You had a lot on your mind. She's done." She said, nodding her head at Jade. Jade smiled at her, and Clare smiled back. She got up out of the chair and turned to me. "I'm sorry I'm being like this. Pregnancy hormones." She smiled slightly, and burped Jade for a while. Eventually, she walked downstairs and gave Bullfrog the baby. He held her like Adam did, and I corrected him. Clare and Cece started talking, about how awesome it was to have children. "I'm proud of you Eli." Bullfrog said. "It takes a lot of guts to have a kid without having a mental breakdown." I shook my head. "I cried before and after she was born." I told him. He started laughing, rocking the baby. "That's totally normal. I cried with every single one." Bullfrog said. Jade hiccupped in his arms, preparing to cry, and he handed her to me. I held her to me, and she stopped fussing. Cece and Bullfrog stood to leave, and Cece told me she'd be back as soon as they could. I nodded and Clare waved goodbye. The door slammed shut, and the baby started crying. I sighed. It was going to be a long eighteen years, but I never wanted them to end.

Clare took Jade out of my arms and we both walked upstairs. Clare bounced her on her shoulder as I had done, and it seemed to help a little. "Shhh, baby, its okay. You're okay. Mommy and Daddy are here." She cooed. The baby hiccupped again, and then wailed. Clare rocked her until she calmed down and put her in her crib. "You've had a big day." She told her. "It's time to go to sleep." Clare and I watched as our daughter fell asleep for the first night back at home. Me and Clare, an hour later, went into our room to sleep. We both curled up in bed, me in boxers and her in panties and a t shirt. We talked about Jade, and how perfect she was. Clare was obviously tired, but started to kiss me, over and over. She wrapped er arms tightly around my neck, weaving her fingers into my hair. I moaned and wrapped my arms tightly around her waist. She was taking off my boxers when Jade started crying. I sighed, and pulled away from Clare as I had before. I grinned and said "I'll get it. Get some sleep." I was walking out of the room when Clare murmured she loved me. I smiled and said "I love you too." I walked in and picked Jade up and murmured into her ear as she cried, "I love you, too."


	8. Accident

**Eli's POV**

When I woke up the next morning at six o clock, Clare was already feeding the baby. You know the every three hours thing. I glanced in Jade's room at her, smiled and walked downstairs. As I was putting butter in the pan for eggs, the house phone rang again. "Eli, can you get it?" Clare called from down the steps. "Yeah, blue eyes!" I yelled and picked up the phone. "Hello, Goldsworthy residence." I spoke into the phone. "Elijah! So good to hear from you! I was just calling to confirm the follow-up appointment." Janine said cheerfully. I wanted to smack her. Nobody used my full name except Clare. She needed to get over herself, and fast. "Who calls to check follow-up appointments at six in the morning? Which one?" I added sarcastically. I refused to be roped into anything.

"Well, either, Mr. Goldsworthy. I had to call early because I need them confirmed at least six hours ahead of them. The one for your wife and daughter is mandatory, at noon today. But the other follow-up appointment you might find…satisfying." Janine whispered. I was ready to hang the phone up. "Yes, my wife and daughter are going to their appointment. I, on the other hand, won't be at mine. Have a terrible day, Janine." I spoke the last words quickly, and shoved the phone down. Maybe the last sentence was a little harsh, but she was really getting on my nerves. Clare walked down the steps then, burping Jade. "Who was that?" Clare asked, as the first few rays of sunlight streamed through the windows. "Guess." I muttered, as I re-threw butter into the pan, and turned the fire on. "Oh." Clare murmured softly, thinking. I laughed sarcastically for a moment and Clare looks up, startled. "She calls here on my phone and the stupid sl-"Clare cut me off, placing one of her hands over my mouth.

"Uh-uh. The baby doesn't need language like that." Clare said, her lips turning upwards to form that award-winning smile. I grinned behind Clare's hand as she pulled it away; I grabbed it and brought it back to my lips. I was about to pull her in my arms and kiss her, gently squeezing Jade in-between us, when Clare laughed and nodded towards the stove. I cursed under my breath and tried to save the butter from being burned as Clare smacked the back of my head. "Ow!" I complained, as I threw eggs into the pan. "Seriously," Clare started, in her lecture voice. "I want my kid growing up to be respectful." I rolled my eyes. "Oh, she will be. Only, some nights there will be exceptions. For example, dead hand concerts, and such." I informed her.

Clare smiled and rocked the baby, who seemed perfectly content. Clare plopped down on the cream-colored couch, and picked up the TV remote. She flipped through channels until she found some educational little kids show. I handed her a plate of eggs and sat down beside her with mine. I looked at Clare, eyebrows raised, but she was just looking at Jade. I grabbed the remote and flipped to Jerry Springer, and laughed at the two girls diving in a pool of pudding. I never watched Jerry Springer, but it was pretty funny. Clare looked at me and made a grab for the remote. "That's not educational." Clare started. "Oh, yes it is." I said, and a giggle escaped my lips. A giggle? It was pretty bright outside now, and the dew on the lawn was melting. Yes, we had a lawn and a backyard too. Whenever Clare found out she was pregnant, she begged me to look for a house, something big, and with yards for the baby to play in. I smiled; it was about time that baby played outside. Clare rolled her eyes at me, and then laughed as the girls started cat fighting in the pool.

"Alright, let's take the baby outside." I said, picking Jade up off of Clare's lap. Clare's eyes widened in shock. "Is it warm enough for that?" she worried. I nodded towards the window. "Besides, we'll bundle her up." I gently held Jade to me as Clare looked for her jacket. I went up the steps and turned into Jade's room. The sun hitting the lavender walls was very pretty. I set her down on the changing table, and discovered she needed a diaper change. I grabbed a diaper, a fresh onesie, her cute little hat, socks, and a tiny cardigan sweater for her. Fiona and Cece had taken Clare baby clothes sopping the second they found out she was pregnant. They tried to get things that could be manageable for both babies, but the convinced Clare to get lots of girl clothes. "If not," Fiona had said, "Whenever the adoption goes through, I'll just take them back if you have a boy." I grinned, thinking about Fiona's future child. I think that kid would have plenty of fashion clothes. I changed her diapers and slipped on her onesie. This one was light purple, with a little lion cub on the front, yawning. The curly words wrapped around it wrote "Just five more minutes?"

Every animal on the onesie's were small and babyish. I gently slipped on her pink hat that had a bow on one side, onto her perfect shaped head. I gently took her feet and slid the socks on; the socks were so small they could have been thumb warmers. I got mesmerized when I looked at her other foot though. Her toes were so tiny! Her toenails were sprinkle-sized. I counted them again, just as I had in the hospital. All five were there. I kissed her foot and slid the other sock on. I scooped her up and put on the pink cardigan sweater with oversized buttons. I left it unbuttoned and walked downstairs.

"Clare, does the baby need shoes?" I asked as Clare opened the stroller. She shook her head. "No, she'll be in the stroller, and her feet should be warm enough with those fluffy socks." Clare smiled and I locked the door as we walked out into the sunlight. It was unusually warm for Canada, just like yesterday. I hoped it stayed. Me and Care walked for awhile as we watched the baby look at grass and fences and trees for the first real time. We were walking past Main Street, the busiest street, when a car blew through a red light, but lost control. Tires squealed, and the peaceful morning was interrupted by car horns. It tried to stop, but it was too late. The car was headed straight for Clare and Jade.


	9. This will pass

**Eli's POV**

Clare screamed as the car jumped the curb and plummeted for her and the baby. Adrenaline raced through my blood, and I shoved up against Clare. Clare, in turn, pushed the stroller and it shoved out of the way and she was out of the line of fire. She fell, but caught herself just as the car was inches away from me. I dived, and by some miracle, the car only caught my foot. Pain rippled up my leg and I screamed. I heard my baby crying. Clare got up and ran to her, picking her up out of her stroller. She tried to, shaking, to undo the straps. She finally got them out and held Jade to her. Both of them were sobbing.

"It's okay, it's okay." Clare soothed, hiccupping. "Eli!" she cried and tried to help me up. My foot hurt. I could move it but it hurt so much. Then suddenly anger roared in my chest. What idiot would drive a car right at a mother and a newborn baby? I started screaming at the driver, who had hit a telephone pole behind me, and cussed him out. Clare held Jade as I hobbled over to the jerk that was getting out of the car. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!" he said, putting his hands up in surrender. I was screaming at him then, about how stupid could he be to go through a red light and almost hit my wife and newborn baby? I was furious.

Clare called my name, and she was sobbing. Jade hadn't calmed down and she rocked her. I limped back and wrapped my arms around them both. "It's going to be okay. We're all okay. It'll be fine." I soothed them both. "E-Eli you're not fine! Look at your leg!" My leg hurt so badly, but I sucked it up. "We have a doctor's appointment today anyway. I'll just get it done there." Clare nodded. I leaned over and grabbed the stroller. I got the driver's insurance information and left to go back home. Clare sobbed the whole way, but Jade stopped crying after about five minutes in her stroller. It hurt like Hell every time I took a step, but I didn't need Clare getting any more worried. We got home and I collapsed on the couch. Clare raced Jade up to her room and put her in her crib as I lay sweating on the couch. When Clare came back down the steps, I asked through clenched teeth if we had aspirin.

"Eli! Your foot is probably broken and you want aspirin?" She got me some and said we had to leave now and take me to the doctor. I looked at the clock and it said eleven. Had it really been that long? Clare was sobbing again when she came back. "W-We all could have died. You, me, J-Jade." She burst into tears and I held her. "It's time to go to the appointment, blue eyes." I murmured. "T-This was supposed to be perfect, and it's all ruined. Isn't this supposed to be the perfect time, in the afterglow of having a baby?" Clare asked. Her hormones were all off track from being pregnant, and I knew how to deal with it by now. "We are, baby. This was just something unexpected that's all. I said that nothing was going to happen to this baby, and I will do everything in my power to keep it that way. Clare, this is the afterglow. I love you and Jade, you are the center of my world. We have a newborn baby to take care of, and a little foot problem isn't going to stop us from enjoying one second of her. Understand?" I asked. Clare nodded and I wiped her tears away. I kissed her. "I love you," I murmured. She mouthed that she loved me to. "I'll be in Morty. You get Jade, but you'll have to drive, okay?" I said. She nodded again, kissed my forehead and disappeared up the steps. I gritted my teeth and hobbled up to Morty, and for the first time in a blue moon, I got in the passenger seat. Clare came out with the baby and put her in the car seat. She got in and I handed her the keys.

"Are you okay, my blue eyes?" I asked her. She nodded, her eyes slowly drying. "Yeah, I am. As long as we're all together and okay, we'll be fine." She murmured. She smiled at me. I kissed her forehead and she drove to the hospital. I called Cece on the drive over, and told her what happened. I had to wait at least ten full minutes before I could get a word in. When we finally pulled into the doctor's office, Clare looked fine. She got Jade out of the car and helped me into the office. We went into the office, and the doctor took us right away. He took an X-ray of my foot, and it was fractured. He put a stint on it and said I could do things normally. Clare was thrilled. Then it was their check-up, and Clare was fine. Jade got a stethoscope put up to her chest, and other weird things.

The doctor examined her feet and looked puzzled. He muttered something under his breath, and pulled Jade up and stood her up on the table. He held her up and gently put some of her weight on her feet. Jade squirmed. "What is it?" Clare asked, worried. The doctor laid Jade back down, and said "Probably nothing. Her feet are just a little less developed then the rest of her. She'll probably be fine; it'll adjust as she'll grow." "It'll _probably _be fine?" Clare asked, her voice surprisingly high pitched. She looked scared. "She'll be fine, Mrs. Goldsworthy. It'll adjust. The worst that could happen is her feet are slightly smaller than other children. Once she hits her first growth spurt, it'll be fine." The doctor shrugged. "Will…Will she be able to walk normal?" I asked gently. The doctor smiled and nodded. "Really, you don't need to be scared about this, its fine. Really."

"How is that possible?" Clare asked. "How could the rest of her body be developed and her feet not be?" The doctor shrugged again. "I'm not sure why. Sometimes kids will be disproportioned, some parts will grow normally and others will be slightly different. It won't affect her much, if at all." The doctor told us to have a good day and to call if we had any questions. I remembered me kissing Jade's feet this morning, before our walk. They were perfect. Jade would be fine. As we walked out of the doctor's office, holding Jade in her carrier in one hand, I grabbed Clare's in hand my other. "Everything will be okay."


	10. Not Again

**Eli's POV**

Later, after the doctor's appointment, I was up in Jade's room. I was just staring at her feet. I kissed them over and over, as if my kisses could make them grow to normal size. I rubbed her tiny feet, and they looked so small in my big hands. The doctor told us not to be worried, but how could we not be? Clare came up behind me and watched me as I rubbed Jade's feet on the changing table. She smiled and leaned up to kiss my cheek. "She'll be fine, if anything comes up we'll deal with it then." She murmured. She then leaned down to tickle the baby's feet. The baby started making wheezing sounds, like she was about to sneeze. Then she giggled. My jaw dropped and Clare's blue eyes widened, her eyebrows shooting up.

"Did she just laugh?" Clare asked me. I nodded numbly. The laugh had sounded like bells. I leaned down and tickled her feet again and she made the same wheezing giggle. It wasn't a child's giggle; it was more of a babyish tinkling noise. Like someone was holding a wind chime. I scooped Jade up and held her to me. My God, she was so perfect. "She's perfect." I murmured. "Did you hear me?" I asked the baby, whispering in her ear. "You're perfect." I told her. Jade smiled at me. God, I loved that smile. Clare kissed Jade's cheeks and took her from me. A shot of pain rippled up my back, but I handed her over. I had never felt like this before. I never felt so protective of anything or anyone in my whole life. Jade and Clare walked down the steps as the doorbell rang. "I'll get it." I said. I ran down to the door and opened it. Cece and Bullfrog were standing there, Cece holding a bag of what looked like dresses. I lifted an eyebrow as my mom hugged me. "Hey baby boy." She said. "I came over to see the little one, and give her these." She said, holding up the bag. Clare giggled from behind me whenever she saw them, and squealed like a little kid. Jade looked behind her, or at least tried to. I grinned, she was so smart. She was definitely my kid. Cece ran behind me and hugged Clare and Jade.

"C'mon," Cece said. "It's about time that little angel played dress-up." I looked at Jade, with her chubby cheeks and the wrinkled hands, and shuddered. Clare sat down on the couch and put Jade in her lap. "Please, be careful. She's only a few days old; I don't want her to get overwhelmed." I said. Then I realized what I had said. Everyone looked at me and Bull frogs eyebrows went up. Clare smiled. "Typical overprotective father." She said, rolling her eyes. "Actually, Eli, I think she likes it." I looked down to see Jade trying to raise her fist and put it in the bag. I opened the door for my dad and went to sit next to Clare on the couch. Clare pulled out the first dress. It was pink and ruffled. It was obviously made for newborns, and it was poufy. Clare and Cece giggled as they took of her onesie and started to pull the dress, very gently, over her head. "Hey, do you know Jade giggled early today?" Clare said, and the twinkle in her eyes, that one that only surfaced whenever looking at Jade, emerged. "Really?" Cece asked. Then she and Clare were again in conversation about babies. The dress pulled over Jade's head, and her eyes were wide with surprise. It was practically comical. I looked at Clare and Cece, deeply immersed in conversation about baby outfits, and then looked at Bullfrog. He looked just as puzzled as I was, and shrugged his shoulders.

Leaned down and kissed Jade's forehead when I felt a wave of sleep deprivation roll over me. I sighed and looked at Clare, and noticed that she had bags under her eyes to. She looked really tired, but thrilled. "Oh, Eli, I'm so sorry about your leg. Thank God you're all okay." Cece said. I nodded. "That's really all that matters. That my blue eyes Jay are okay." I said. They all looked at me. "Jay?" Clare asked. I shrugged, my eyelids drooping. "I don't know, I'm just staying stuff." I murmured. My eyes shut and I was on the couch, drifting off whenever Cece shook me. "Baby boy, go to bed." She looked at Clare, at the bags under her blue eyes. "You to, honey. Bullfrog and I will take the baby for the day. Yeah, we'll take her over to our house." Clare looked terrified. "But, what about car seats and when will the baby eat?" Clare asked. "Well, we'll take you car seat, and we'll bring some formula and diapers and things with us. It'll be fine, Clare." Cece said. Clare's eyelids started to droop. "Well, I'm pretty tired." She looked at the clock, which read 2:38. "Well…Can you have her back by six?" Clare asked. Cece nodded, and ran upstairs to grab a baby bag, and the things Jade needed. Clare rocked Jade for awhile and looked pained. Like she was giving an arm or leg to Cece for the day. I looked down at her and realized I would miss her to. I kissed her forehead over and over, caressing her soft creamy baby skin. She was so wonderful. Clare looked a little sad, but kissed the baby to. "You're going to go over to Grandma and Grandpa's, okay?" She told Jade. Jade looked tired as she was handed over to Bullfrog. "I love you," she told Jade as Cece and Bullfrog walked out of the door, me right behind them. I unlocked Morty and pulled out the car seat. I handed it to Cece, and se positioned it in her car. Bullfrog handed me Jade to put in as he went to sit up front.

I kissed Jade's forehead after I buckled her in and murmured into her ear, "Daddy loves you, too." I shut the door and they left. I stood there for a minute, and I felt like I'd gotten punched in the gut. I promised myself that she'd be back soon and walked back into my house. Clare was already in bed. I took off my shirt and skinny jeans and curled up in bed with her. I kissed her and murmured "I love you, blue eyes." We both quickly drifted off to sleep. I woke up at the sound of the doorbell ringing. Clare was still fast asleep. I kissed her forehead again before slipping on my jeans and walking downstairs. The clock next the TV said 6:17 and I opened the door to find Cece and Bullfrog standing there. Cece handed me Jade, who was fast asleep, in her carrier and handed me the bag full of her things. "I just fed her and changed her diaper before we left the house, so she should be fine." Cece told me. She gave me a quick hug, told me goodnight and both of them went back towards they're car. "Thanks for letting us take her, Eli." Bullfrog said. I smiled and took Jade upstairs, shutting and locking the door. I gently eased Jade out of one of those ridiculously girly dresses Cece had put on her and gently laid her down in her crib. I put away all of her other things, and went downstairs to put her carrier by the door for when me and Clare where going out. The doorbell rang just as I set her carrier down. Probably Cece and Bullfrog, forgetting to give me something. I looked down again at what I was wearing, no shirt, but that didn't matter. I opened the door and my jaw dropped in shock. I quickly shut my mouth and was ready to slam the door in the face of a certain nurse with blonde hair and grey eyes.


	11. Apoligies and Heaven

**Eli's POV**

I was ready to smack her. What the hell was Janine's problem? Why was she here? Janine smiled at me, her lipstick almost making me sick. She had on eyeliner, eye shadow and mascara. She was wearing a short halter top red dress. It was like she was going to see a movie star, not me. "Elijah." She purred. I rolled my eyes. "You know what, Janine? You could have saved yourself all that make up, you still look disgusting. Get the hell off my porch." I told her, putting as much venom into my words as possible. She batted her eyelashes and said "Oh, Elijah, don't be so defensive. You know you'd love to be with me. Your wife is so boring. Please, you could have so much adventure with me." She moved closer towards me and quickly wrapped my arms around my neck.

She pressed her lips to mine as I desperately shoved her away. I made aloud muffled noise and pushed her. She was shoved backwards, and almost fell in her stilettos. I glared at her. "Listen, you desperate piece of trash. I love Clare more than anything. I love my child more than anything. Clare is the only woman I want. I've never hit a woman before in my life, and you're pushing it. Stop harassing me and my family or I'll sue you for sexual harassment and assault. Get the hell away from me and Clare." Janine looked like she got slapped. She looked at me like I was a Martian, and then slowly backed away. "You're a jerk. You're passing up a hell of an opportunity." She said. I rolled my eyes. "You know what Janine? I'll go out with you when Hell freezes over." I slammed the door in her face and watched through the window as she walked towards her car, got in the front seat and drove away crying. I turned around to see Clare standing there, smiling at me. She was _smiling? _"I've been over there the whole time," she said, "gesturing to the steps. "That was really great of you, Eli." She murmured. Her voice had changed, it was rugged. Sexier. She moved towards me and wrapped her arms around my neck. She kissed my face over and over and then slowly kissed my lips.

I thought I had died and gone to Heaven whenever she started pulling at my pants. I grinned and kissed her. We ran up the steps, and I stopped for a minute. "What's wrong?" Clare asked. "I can do it now." I smiled at her words but said "Let me check on Jade first. Hurry up, get undressed." I said to her, my voice like velvet. I quickly went into Jade's room and gazed into her crib. She had Clare's shape of face, and dark eyebrows. Her eyes were exactly my color, and she had Clare's perfect pale skin. He lips were the colors of roses, and shaped just like Clare's were. Her cheeks had a slight blush. She had a few locks of very soft babyish hair on her head, the same shade as mine. Her body was so small, the size of a slipper. I leaned down and kissed her soft skin. I grinned, and ran into the room of my other love, preparing to rock her world.

*The next morning*

I woke up just in time to see Clare walk out of the room, fastening her robe on. I had slept my first full night since Jade was born, and it felt pretty good. I gently got up with her as she went in to feed Jade. "How many times have you been up?" I asked Clare as I went into Jade's room, yawning. "Three." Clare said. She smiled at me, blushing. "Thanks so much for last night, Eli." I smiled contently to myself. "My pleasure." I grinned. Last night had been Heaven on Earth, and that was putting it mildly. I asked Clare if she wanted breakfast, and she nodded. I went downstairs and made pancakes. My wife deserved something better than eggs this morning. Clare came downstairs, burping the baby on her shoulder. She smiled whenever she saw the feast I'd made her. She handed Jade to me, and I held her against me. I kissed the top of her head and she made that wheezing giggle noise again. I gently wiped the spit off of her lips with my shirt. I looked up to see Clare smiling at me "You're such a great dad." She told me. "Yes," I said, "I am."

A few minutes after Clare was done eating, my cell phone rang. I flipped it open and held it to my ear. I didn't even need to say hello before Adam's excited voice was in my ear. "Tracy's having the baby!" he said, excited. Tracy, the young girl they were adopting their daughter from had apparently gone into labor. "That's great, man!" I said. "Little machismo is finally going to be a baby daddy huh?" "Hell yeah, man! It's about time, too! Fiona wants you to come over right now, the baby's going to be born any minute! Bring Clare, you two are the godparents! Got to go, man, Tracy's pushing!" The phone hung up and Clare looked at me. "Tracy's having the baby, Adam wants us to go over there now." Clare's eyes widened and she smiled. "Yeah, c'mon, let's go." She ran upstairs to change as I put Jade into a blue onesie. I was putting Jade into her car seat as Clare ran out and got into Morty's passenger side. We drove to the hospital quickly, barely following the speed limit.

Whenever we walked into the hospital with me carrying Jade in her carrier, Janine came up to us. Me and Clare both stiffened, and my fist rolled into a ball. She looked very sad and she mumbled something. "What was that, Janine? I couldn't' hear you." Clare said heartlessly. I looked at my blue eyes. Wow, when did she get pissed and still manage to be _so _sexy? "I just said I'm sorry. I didn't know what I was doing; I'd taken some pills and drank a little before. I'm sorry." Janine walked away after her confession, and I just nodded stiffly. We raced into where Adam and Fiona sat, cuddling their baby. Adam and Fiona looked up whenever we walked in, tears running down their faces. Clare ran over and hugged Fiona and I quickly gave Adam a man hug. They were both looking down at their child who was wrapped in a pink blanket. She was tiny, with dark eyebrows and light peach fuzz hair. She had chubby cheeks, like Jade but was sleeping so I couldn't tell her eye color. "This is Nevaeh." Fiona murmured. "Heaven spelled backwards." Adam explained, his eyes not leaving his child. "Nevaeh Isabella Torres." Fiona murmured. And we all sat there, looking at our children, Heaven and Light, Nevaeh and Jade.

**A/N Review, etc. Any thoughts are welcome! (Thanks to all those great people who wrote reviews, you guys are the best!) **


	12. Newborns and New problems

**Eli's POV**

The babies were so beautiful. They looked great together. Whenever Nevaeh had opened her eyes, they had been blue, almost the same shade as Fiona's. The birth mother had already said goodbye to her before we got there, so it saved us a lot of tears. Adam seemed to be completely changed. He looked scared to death, but thrilled. I assume that's how I'd looked whenever I had been in the hospital with Jade. Clare and Fiona were both talking about how wonderful having children was. "And you got to skip labor!" Clare said. "Thank God," Fiona admitted, "it looked like getting hit by a train and being dipped in acid at the same time. Her screams painted a pretty vivid picture." Then they were on talking about clothes for the girls. I looked over at my little machismo, all grown up. His eyes were full of wonder as he looked at his child. The same expression was on my face every time I looked at Jade. We held our children and sat in the hospital room for a couple of hours. Whenever Clare had Fiona had gone out to get food, a doctor walked in.

"Mr. Goldsworthy?" he asked. I tilted my head up and Adam glanced at me. Why was a doctor coming in here for me? "Um, yes?" I replied. "The doctor wants to schedule an appointment about your daughter. You too, Mr. Torres." The doctor left the room, and Adam stared at me. "Why would you need an appointment, too?" Adam asked me. "Didn't you already get one?" I quickly explained to him about Jade's feet. "It should be fine. It will be fine." I told him, not sure if I was convincing him or me. I called our doctor, Dr. Fieldsman, and asked for what time our appointment would be. He told me that it would be at four tomorrow afternoon.

"Doctor Fieldsman, I don't understand. Why are we coming in again?"

"Well, we'd like to run some tests on your daughter's feet, just to make sure they'll continue to grow at a normal rate."

"Alright. I'll bring her in tomorrow."

I had taken a whole month off of work for Jade's birth, considering that I was very friendly with my boss. After saying goodbye to Adam, I walked outside to see Fiona and Clare standing there, holding bags of food. "Where are you going?" Clare asked. I was so worried about Jade's feet; I'd almost forgotten they were coming back. "Just out for a while to get some fresh air. I'll be right back." I said. I walked down with Jade into a little place I liked to call the sun room. Three of the walls were glass, so you could see a view from three different sides, and there was a door that would take you right into it. It was very nice out, more weird weather for Canada when I sat down with Jade. She was awake now, squirming. I gently pulled her out of her carrier and held her to my stomach as I sat down in the chair, Jade sitting comfortably in my lap. Her head was rested against my abs as he looked at the view of Toronto. I wasn't staring at the view; I was staring at my baby. She was so tiny and fragile, and the world was so big and rough. I wouldn't always be there to protect her, but I wanted to be. She craned her neck up, her emerald eyes searching desperately for something out of the window that I couldn't see. "It's incredible." I murmured to her. "I never thought I could love anybody as much as I love Clare, and then you came along." I kissed her forehead and she tilted her head to look at me, her eyes curious. She was so smart, she really wanted to learn. I rocked her until she fell asleep, but didn't put her in the carrier. I just sat there in the sun, holding my little ray of light.

*Driving home*

Me and Clare had been talking for a long time about Jade's college fund, when Jade began to cry. I groaned and took off my seat belt. Clare was driving Morty because she had insisted on driving this time. I crawled into the back seat and looked at my baby. Something was wrong. Her eyes were watery and out of focus, her breathing was shallow. Fear shot though me. "Clare! Clare, pull over!" I said. Clare, alarmed by my voice and tone said "Eli, what is it?" and pulled the car over, only minutes from our house. I readjusted my position in the back seat, and tried to undo the straps on Jade's carrier. Her skin had an ugly tinge to it. Clare opened her door and ran to the side of the car, quickly pulling the door open. "Oh my God." She said, terrified. I scooped Jade up and rocked her, trying to see what was wrong. She struggled in my arms, her breathing getting rapid and shallower. "Eli, she shouldn't be breathing like that. We're going to the hospital. Stay back there with her." Clare hopped in the front seat and turned the key, slamming her door shut. She sped off, driving back towards the hospital. I held Jade to me, horrified. Her body shuddered, and then she vomited on my shirt. I tilted her so that way all of it would come out of her throat and onto me. I couldn't care less about my shirt.

Clare and Jade whimpered at the same time, and I wanted to scream. Please, let her be okay, please, please, please. I'd die if anything happened to Jade. Clare squealed into the hospital parking lot, slamming Morty to a space. I was out of the car in less than a second, taking my baby into the emergency entrance. "Somebody help me!" I said, as Clare ran in right behind me. "Something's wrong my baby!" Two nurses ran over, and once they saw Jade, they turned pale. The nurse took Jade out of my hands, and called for a Doctor Rivera. A female doctor walked up and looked at Jade, and scooped her up, taking her into a room, me and Clare right behind her. She pulled out a stomach pump and something I recognized from Clare's labor, a suction bulb, to help the baby breate. Jade hadn't needed it then, and whenever I had asked why it was here, the nurse had said in case anything goes wrong. What exactly had gone wrong? Jade shuddered as they inserted the tube and began to pump her stomach. Clare was crying, and making whimpering noises as I just stared in horror as my baby threw up again. Please God. I thought, praying for the first time in my life. Please, let her be okay.


	13. Product Probs and Perfect

**Eli's POV**

After they pumped Jade's stomach, she started breathing normally again. I had turned Clare around so that way she wouldn't see it. She was crying into shirt, on the other side of were Jade had thrown up. I watched in horror as they pulled the stomach pump out, and then sighed in relief as Jade started to cry. Her airway was clear. The nurse picked her up and rocked her. "That's the third one this week." She murmured and the doctor nodded. The nurse handed Jade to me, and a wipe. I gently wiped Jade's face off as Clare turned around and tried to hold her. I handed Jade to her and she cried in Jade's forehead. "Oh, my baby." She cried, sobbing. "What the hell happened?" I asked the doctor.

The doctor pulled off her gloves and said "Product recall. A brand of baby formula has an additive that's making baby's sick. It expands and makes it hard for the baby to breathe. Had you brought her in a few minutes later, she would have died. Clare cried harder, rocking Jade against her. "Baby formula? But Clare's been feeding…" But Clare hadn't been. Not last night when they were at Cece's and Bull frogs. "Cece and Bull frog. They fed her baby formula. Jesus." I muttered. Clare looked up at me, her eyes surging tears of relief. I collapsed into a chair behind me and put my face in my hands.

Clare shuddered, and sat down next to me, holding the baby. "What brand?" I asked. "Baby Co." the nurse muttered. "Idiots didn't even test it. We've pulled it out of all the grocery stores and put warnings on the news, but some families don't see it. Get rid of it if you have any." They gave me some forms to fill out. I filled them, glancing up frequently to look at Jade. She seemed to be breathing fine, and her blush had returned. Slowly, she fell asleep.

Clare's tears stopped and she pulled my phone out of my pocket. "Who are you calling?" I asked. "Cece and Bullfrog, to tell them to get rid of that garbage, and then Fiona and Adam, to make sure they won't feed Nevaeh this." It took her twenty minutes to talk to Cece, because she wouldn't stop apologizing. They got rid of it, of course. Whenever she called Adam and Fiona, they didn't have any of it, But Fiona talked to Clare for a long time about it. She held Jade the whole time. I looked down at my shirt, with the vomit on it and walked to the bathroom and cleaned it off. I splashed my face off in water and looked in the mirror. I looked tired and scared. But then I thought of Jade, and how she was okay and I smiled. My eyes glittered and the old Eli was back again. I thought of Jade and I felt a strange sense of pride in my chest. She really was mine.

"So, that's the face of a father." I said, looking at my reflection. I walked back into the room where my two angels sat and kissed both of their foreheads. "Can I hold her?" I begged. Clare was still on the phone. She had calmed down. Clare looked pain but nodded. Before she handed the baby to me, Clare wrapped one of her arms around my neck and kissed me. Fireworks shot off in my head and I kissed her back. Whenever she was done she smiled at me and handed me Jade. I rocked her and asked the nurse when we could go home. They told us we could leave now if we wanted to. I gently pulled Clare and up and we walked out of the hospital. We got into Morty, and drove home. It was almost six by the time we got there, and Clare had to feed Jade again. She went into the house and up into Jade's room. I sat down on the couch and tried to breathe normal. I was so tired.

I had so much stress right now it was unbelievable. Whenever Clare came down alone, I looked up. "You feed her?" I asked. She nodded. "Yeah, I put her to bed, too." She walked into the kitchen and came back with two wine glasses and a bottle of red wine. I had bought that for Clare for after her pregnancy was over, and she wanted wine again. She sat down on the couch next to me, and poured us both some. I took mine and held it in my hands, staring down at the red liquid. I sighed, and took a sip. Clare sipped hers and we just sat there. "Did you eat yet?" Clare asked. I shook my head. I didn't realize it until now, but I was starving. She pulled out her cell phone and called a number I didn't recognize. Ordering food. She got a pizza for me, and a salad and spaghetti for her.

"You didn't have to do that." I said. Clare just smiled. "I wanted to. I was hungry too." She looked tired. I put my wine glass on the coffee table next to the wine bottle and got behind Clare on the couch on my knees. I put my hands on my shoulder s and gently started to massage them. Clare moaned and pushed back against me, squirming. I couldn't help what came next. "Eli..." Clare said, looking at me. I blushed and tried to pull my waist away from her back, but she pushed up against it. My eyebrows shot up and my eyes widened. My hands froze on Clare's shoulders. "Why'd you stop, Elijah?" she murmured. I smiled. Clare was the only one who used my full name, and she only did it seductively. I gently began to massage her shoulders and back again, going all the way down to her lower back. I wrapped my arms around her waist from behind, and caressed her stomach under her shirt. Clare turned around and kissed me. We were kissing, and I gently picked her up bridal style and carried her up to our bed room. Everything was perfect.


	14. Prayer

**Eli's POV**

I woke up to hear Jade crying in her room. Clare stirred, and I brushed her hair back. I got up and stretched. I slipped on boxers and walked into Jade's room. She was crying, the moon light shining through the windows. I picked Jade up and held her to me, rocking her. She cried louder and I could just barely see her feet. They were bigger, swollen. What the hell? I flipped the light switch and laid Jade down on the changing table. Her tiny feet were purple and swollen. I gasped, shock radiating down my back. Fear froze me in place for a second, and then anger flared in my chest. That idiot doctor said she would be fine! I watched as Jade's arms and legs flailed, trying to rid her body of whatever was causing her pain. Her little angel face twisted as she screamed and cried. She kicked her feet and I caught her as she rolled off the changing table. "Oh my God, Jade."

My voice was thick as I shook Clare awake. "Clare, Clare, get up. Something's wrong with Jade, we have to take her to the doctor." I shook Clare harder and her eyes fluttered open. "E-Eli? What is it?" "Jade." I said, placing the baby in front of her. Care gasped and her blue eyes widened in fear whenever she saw our baby's feet. She was out of bed and at her dresser, scooping out clothes, in less than two seconds. "Get her in the car; I'll be out in a second." Clare said. I was so panicked that I didn't even bother to correct her that Morty was a hearse, and should not be talked to like that. I ran into Jade's room, holding her in my arms, and grabbed a blanket, wrapping it around her. I slipped on jeans and a t shirt and shoved my shoes on. I was out of the door in a few seconds, flipping the keys around in my hand, fumbling for the right one as Jade screamed in my arms. I unlocked Morty and put Jade in her car seat. I dived into the front seat and twisted the key into the ignition just as Clare ran out. She got in the backseat with Jade, as I peeled out of the drive way.

***An hour later***

We were sitting in the hospital room, waiting nervously for the test results to get back. They had X-rayed Jade's feet, and ran some blood tests. Whenever they poked Jade with the needle Clare cried more than Jade did. Clare held our daughter in her arms as I paced the waiting room. Jade had stopped crying, thank God for Children's Tylenol. She was asleep, and the swelling in her feet had gone down. The doctor walked in and motioned for us to follow him to his office. Clare stood up and walked after him and I followed. I was so sick of being at the hospital. We both sat down and the doctor looked down at his clipboard. He sighed, and brought his hand up to wipe his eyes. "The test came back inconclusive, so it's probable she doesn't have any delaying diseases. On the other hand," the doctor pulled X-rays out of the clip board and taped them up on a light on the wall. He flipped a switch, and a light turned on behind the X-ray, illuminating it for us. Clare and I both gasped, and the baby stirred in Clare's lap. The baby's feet were noticeably smaller, but her bones were tinier there than the rest of her body. "How?" I choked out. "It is possible that, since the feet are farthest from the heart, it got delayed blood flow, and caused her feet to get smaller somehow. It should correct itself in time, but if it doesn't…your daughter might not be able to walk properly." Clare started choking back sobs, holding her face in her hands. She peered down at Jade between her fingers with her tear flooded blue eyes, and sobbed harder. Pain rippled through my body, and it hurt more that most of the pain I'd ever felt. She wouldn't be able to walk properly? Or run, or play sports? Me and Clare had never played sports, but Adam had recently started playing and liked it. I didn't want my child to be deprived of any experiences.

Clare sobbed as I held her, and the doctor examined the baby's feet. "These should be corrected with time, don't worry." Clare cried harder and glared up at the doctor. "Bullshit. That's what you said earlier, and looked what happened." Clare's blue eyes blazed with fire, and it was scaring me. Clare had never sworn like that before. The doctor looked unfazed, but wary. "Mrs. Goldsworthy, I have nothing more to tell you except that I'm sorry. You can either believe my diagnosis or ignore it, I don't personally care. Professionally, though, I recommend that you give her antibiotics so that way her feet will heal and grow normally, just for a few weeks. Give it to her twice a day before you feed her." Clare nodded, apologized, and picked up Jade.

***Back at home***

Jade was in her crib and Clare was sobbing in my arms. It took me a couple of minutes before I even realized I was crying too. Please let her be okay. Clare looked up at me and my heart shattered whenever I saw the pain in those perfect eyes. "Eli, please tell me it's going to be okay. Please, please, Eli, she has to be okay." She sobbed. I wrapped my arms tighter around her and kissed her. I couldn't tell her it would be okay, I didn't know that and I wouldn't promise that to her. "Clare, I promise, me and you will help Jade as much as we can. Whatever happens, we'll always be a family. I will die for Jade in a second, and I will help her as much as I can. Clare, we aren't just Eli and Clare anymore. We're Mom and Dad. We have to be the strongest people in Jade's life, so that she can depend on us. It'll be okay." I murmured. Clare slowly stopped crying and we went up to bed. I got out of bed, leaving Clare and got Jade out of her crib. I walked back into my room, rocking Jade in the moon light. I crawled into bed next to Clare and put our baby in between us. I kissed both of their foreheads and we all slowly drifted off to sleep. But before I fell asleep, I heard Clare pray for our daughter.

**A/N Any thoughts? Review please!**


	15. Greatest Feeling

**Eli's POV**

I was in Jade's room soon. I couldn't sleep; I was worrying too much about my daughter. She was asleep in her crib, and her feet looked normal again. I leaned down and kissed my baby's forehead. My heart swelled whenever she rolled over, trying to lie on her back. I helped her, taking my hand and placed it over her back, and I moved her gently. My hand covered her whole back, she was so tiny. Jade made a funny noise as I moved her. I don't know how long I stood like that, a few minutes or a few hours, but the outcome was the same. I wouldn't let anything happen to this child. But how could I help her if the problem was under her skin?

***One week later***

Me and Clare laughed as our baby tried to pull up grass. We all were currently sitting on two blankets pushed together, and watched as our children played. Adam laughed as Nevaeh tried to roll over. He helped her, and she smiled up at him. I turned back to our feast of fattening foods and picked up mashed potatoes. I looked at Nevaehs dress and rolled my eyes. As predicted, Fiona had gone completely over board with buying baby clothes. Nevaeh was wearing a pink fluffy dress with roses on the front, and had headband with a large flower on it. I scooped some mashed potatoes out of the container with my finger and put it in my mouth just as Clare turned around. "You eat worse than the babies." She said, laughing. Fiona turned to Clare and they both laughed harder. Adam and I looked at each other and Adam shrugged. I looked down at my daughter and noticed her sock had come off. I pulled the tiny sock over her tiny feet and smiled. The doctor had been right, Jade had started taking that medicine and she was fine. Her feet had developed a lot in just a couple of days, but it was slowing down, going back to normal pace. We had to get her feet X-rayed every couple of weeks to see her progress, but she was going fine. They hadn't swelled in a long time, and she seemed to be moving them alright. A bird flew overhead and both babies looked up, with a puzzled, curious look on their faces. We all smiled. Our babies were so beautiful.

Nevaeh's hair was a light brown color, with a few strands of blonde in it. Jade's eyes were still a deep emerald color, and her hair hadn't changed at all, except that there was more of it. Her hair had grown in very quickly, and she had a few little curls plastered to her head. Her head was covered with a little pink hat that flowed out, covering her eyes from the sun. Adam seemed to notice this, and put his baseball hat over top of her headband. The hat covered her head and Adam laughed, taking it off. I took the tiny towel and wiped some spit off of Jade's lip. They were both lying on the blanket, staring up at the leaves of the oak tree we were underneath. Jade was closer to us, and I laid on the blanket. I curled up next to Jade, and gently put her head up closer to my shoulder so that way I could wrap my arm around her. Fiona and Clare both said "Awww!" and Adam took the hint. He did the same with Nevaeh, and Fiona and Clare both watched as we cuddled our children. Jade looked at me curiously_, _and my little angel smiled up at me. The only thing I could describe it as is bliss. Jade smiled up at me and I brushed her dark curls back. Clare and Fiona looked at each other and then Clare pulled something out of Jade's baby bag. She handed one to Fiona and looked at the thing in her hand. Jade, always curious, tried to pull herself up to see, but was too little to do that just yet. I scooped her up and put her on my chest, looking at her mother.

I almost gasped whenever I saw the similarities between Jade and Clare. Their faces were the exact same shape, their noses the exact same, and perfect lips the exact same size, shape and color. "What's Mommy doing? Huh? Do you know what Mommy's doing?" I asked Jade, cooing in a baby voice. What had happened to me? I don't coo. Clare showed me what she was holding in her hand just as Fiona showed Adam hers. "We thought you guys deserved a night out." Fiona said, showing us the Dead Hand concert tickets. Adam wasn't particularly interested in Dead Hand, but he loved the thought of going out. Clare handed me the ticket, and Fiona gave Adam his. "Are you serious?" I asked, staring at the ticket. Jade, now lying on my chest tried to grab it, and I let her. She held it in her pudgy little fist and ten leaned down and bit into it. "Hey! Hey!" I said, taking the ticket back, wiping off the baby slobber. Just great. Everyone started laughing and I looked down and saw the expression on Jade's face. She looked at me with the _Oh-no-he-didn't _look. I started laughing and Nevaeh and Jade looked at each other. Nevaeh hiccupped and Jade did that wheezing giggle of hers. We all laughed harder. They were so cute. "Oh, God, we have to go." Fiona said, standing. I readjusted Jade's little sundress and looked up at her.

"Already?" I asked, looking up at Clare. She nodded, but looked pained. "Do we have to?" she asked Fiona. Fiona and Clare were going shopping today, for baby things and things for themselves. "Yes, we have to. C'mon Clare." She said. She leaned down and picked Nevaeh off of Adam's chest. "Hey!" Adam said. Fiona rolled her eyes and held her baby close to her. "You're going to stay with Daddy today, okay?" Fiona told Nevaeh. Clare picked up Jade and I looked up in outrage. Clare cuddled Jade and kissed her face. "Mommy will be back soon." Clare promised. She cuddled the baby and then finally, handed her back to me. I cleared my throat and was tapping my foot whenever Clare handed her back to me. "Thank you." I said. Clare and Fiona smiled and waved at us as they got into Fiona's Mercedes and drove away, Clare still looking out the window.

Adam and I just sat there with our children, enjoying the sun. Jade and Nevaeh lay next to each other, and played with each other's hands. "This is the greatest feeling ever." Adam said a while later, as he rubbed his sleeping daughter's back. Jade was asleep too, Nevaeh and Jade facing each other. I was rubbing Jade's shoulders. "Yeah," I replied. "It is."


	16. Another baby?

**Eli's POV**

***A month later***

Clare and I were in bed together, talking about how Jade's teeth were coming in, when Clare looked troubled. "What's wrong, blue eyes?" I asked. Clare looked up at me, nervous, biting her bottom lip. She pulled her lips apart, and almost inaudibly began to speak. "Eli…how many children are you planning on having?" Clare asked me. I froze; did Clare want another child so quickly? We kind of had our hand full with Jade. But Clare looked at me, and her blue orbs stared straight into mine. "You want to have another baby so soon?" I asked, confused. But…we just had one. Clare shook her head quickly. "No, no. That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that I want Jade to be a big sister, but not immediately. I want Jade to have someone close in age to play with, you know? Eli, she's pushing two months. She'll be two months old tomorrow." And yes, it was true, tomorrow was July 17th. "I'm saying that if you want to," Clare continued, "we could have another child, so that way Jade would have someone to play with. Maybe, two years apart or so. Eli, what do you think?" She looked even more nervous, and bit down hard on her bottom lip, almost drawing blood. I was frozen on the inside. Yes, I wanted more children.

I nodded stiffly. "What I'm thinking Clare is that we just had a beautiful baby girl, and that I would love for her to be a big sister. And I think that Jade would like it, too." Me and Clare stayed up all night discussing strategies about when to have our next child. "We could give ourselves six months to get pregnant, plus the usual nine months to have the baby. That would make Jade almost two when the baby comes." Clare explained. I agreed, and I was thrilled. The feelings I felt for Jade were the deepest I'd ever felt for anyone besides Clare. Even Julia couldn't compare to this. I cherished every second I spent with my daughter, and I loved doing father things. At my job as a Toronto news journalist (I just wrote the stories, no field work) I showed pictures of Jade to my coworkers all the time. I loved helping her with little things, like feeding her the mushed baby food she ate, or trying to teach her how to walk. I loved that child, and I needed her like I need oxygen.

But to have another one? Double the fun, bring it on. I would love to have another baby, and I told Clare that. Clare was thrilled of course, and we started trying to have a baby that very night.

***The next morning***

Me and Clare decided to stop having sex right now, and to wait a little while before really seriously trying to have a child. Besides, Jade had us swamped. "Jade, that's gross!" I said, wiping baby spit off of her chin. "C'mon, just eat!" I said, desperately trying to feed her before I had to go to work. Clare came downstairs, and took the spoon of strained carrots from my hand and started making train noises. "Chug-a-chug-a-choo-choo! Open up for the train!" Clare said. Jade obediently opened her mouth and chomped down on the "train." She swallowed and smiled triumphantly up at me when Clare pulled the spoon out of her mouth. "You have to make it amusing to her." Clare explained patiently, making the noise again and fed Jade. Whenever Clare was done, I scooped Jade up and burped her. I felt more than a burp. "Oh, c'mon!" I said loudly, a stream of swear words slipping out of my lips. I looked at Jade, who was making her wheezing giggle. "Nice job, kid." I said, sitting her down in the high chair while I grabbed a paper towel to wipe off the baby vomit on my shoulder. Yuck. Clare scooped Jade up and said "C'mon, honey, its nap time." She told Jade as she walked up the steps into Jade's room. I walked into my bedroom to find a clean shirt as I heard classical music coming from Jade's room.

This was Clare's trick to make Jade sleep. Hell, I would fall asleep to if someone played classical music. "Eli, you smell. Go take a shower." Clare told me, sniffing my shoulder. I rolled my eyes and walked into the bathroom. Typical. "I'm going to be late for work!" I complained, throwing my pants down onto the ground and turning on the shower. I slipped underneath the hot water and quickly tried to scrub off my body. The hot water was very relaxing, and then Clare's arms wrapped tightly around my waist, and I felt her naked body press against my back. "Stay at home. Tell your boss that you're sick, and that you have to stay in bed." Clare said seductively, kissing me. So much for the waiting plan. Here we go again.

**A/N I know it was short, sorry. Next one will be longer. I'm going to make it awhile before Clare gets pregnant, but what sex should the baby be? Review! **


	17. Here we go again

**Eli's POV**

***A week later***

"Jade, I'm serious, let it go right now." Nobody ever tells you how ridiculously hard it is going to be. Not when your wife is pregnant, not even when she has the baby. Jade was currently holding a box of cake mix n her pudgy hands and threw it onto the floor. This had been the hundredth item that had met the ground up-close and personal thanks to my rug rat. Jade spied a carton of sprinkles, and I snatched it out of her hands, she liked at me with her big green disappointed eyes and I couldn't help but feel guilty. Her hair had grown in a little more, but she still couldn't really move around yet. She had been teething a week ago, and now the tiny pearly whites were here. She was growing pretty fast, and I didn't like it one bit. As I turned around, walking into a different aisle to look for diapers, I found something worse. Janine looked over her shoulder and smiled at me.

"Eli!" she crowed, like we were old friends. I just stared at her with the look I learned in high school and would use for the rest of my life, the _I-hate-you-leave-me-the-Hell-alone _look. I'd mastered it by now. Janine and I just stared at each other, me with my look, her looking awed. The awkward tension was broken whenever Jade threw down a pack of diapers. It was incredible, the girl couldn't walk, but yet she could somehow, at nine weeks old, could raise her hand and knock something off the shelf. I put the cart into the middle of the aisle, and Jade glared at me. I put my hand into the baby carrier and she seemed satisfied with her new-found amusement. She played with my fingers, just using her little hands to turn my big hand around, and watching it carefully, as if at any second it could grab her. Being distracted by Jade's entertainment, I made my hand lunge for her face, but I didn't even get to touch her. She flailed her feet furiously, trying to keep my hand back. I laughed, and Jade made her wheezing giggle before biting down on my hand with her brand-new chompers. I hissed a swear word under my breath and pulled away. Jade held my hand and played with my fingers after that. Janine's laughter was the only thing that brought me out of my happy fog with my child. I glared at Janine, what does she want? Janine blushed and I said "Janine. What do you want?" I asked, my voice strained as Jade bit my hand. She shrugged. "Just looking for the stuff I need." She said, gesturing back to the shaving cream. I rolled my eyes and turned back to the diapers and put three packages in. Jade went through diapers faster than a NASCAR driver does a lap.

Jade looked up at me, and I couldn't help but smile. The kid was intelligent; thank God she had Clare's brains. She was very curious about the world, and in her room she was already figuring out what to do to get a reaction out of me and Clare. If you cry, you get held. Stuff like that. My baby smiled up at me and my heart melted. I had turned into a total push-over after Jade was born. Janine giggled as she saw my dreamy gaze, and I put my macho mask back on. I pushed the cart down the aisle, stopping once only to throw in baby shampoo, and turned the corner. Adam was pushing a cart, with Nevaeh in the carrier just like Jade. He looked tired. "Eli!" he said, and his face lit up. Nevaeh squirmed in her carrier when she heard her father's voice. I smiled at him, "What's up machismo?" I asked. He grinned then. "Fiona's looking into adoption again; she wants Nevaeh to be a big sister just like Jade." I smiled, this was great. Clare and I had told Adam and Fiona about our plan to have another baby by next year, and they were so excited. Fiona and Clare were discussing clothes shopping right after we had told them. Fiona had been so excited I remembered saying 'It's not like your having our baby!' she had laughed, but maybe I had planted the idea in her head. "It wasn't because of us, was it?" I asked Adam as Jade gently nipped my hand again. Adam shrugged, and looked a little guilty. "Well, she started thinking about it after you guys told us about your plans, and she thought it was a great idea. I'm all for it."

Adam did look excited, and I congratulated him. Now all of our kids could hang out together. Me and Adam said goodbye, and I paid for our groceries. I pushed the cart out to Morty, and set it there as I opened his trunk. I kept one hand on the cart, in case someone tried to take Jade (See how overprotective I am?) and put grocery bags in with the other. I refused to be Jade in the car just in case I got carjacked and they took Jade with them. On the drive home, I kept looking in the rear view mirror to see my daughter trying to look out the window shades to see the trees. I smiled and went into the house, looking for Clare. I gently took Jade upstairs and put her in her crib for nap time and went back out to Morty to get the groceries. After I put the groceries away, I went to go put the diapers underneath the changing table in Jade's room. I glanced up from the table and look to see Jade. Panic shot through me as I realized she wasn't in her crib. I raced around the house until I checked my bedroom. There was Clare, lying on the bed, with Jade lying next to her. Jade was fast asleep. Clare had a huge grin on her face and she stroked Jade's curls. She looked up at me after tracing a finger along Jade's pale skin. "Eli," she said, her voice filled with excitement. "My period's late."


	18. Tests and Nevaeh probs

**A/N Keep reviewing you guys, I love you! **

**Eli's POV**

I froze. Oh my God. Another baby? So soon? Then another flood of warmth, another baby? Another little guy or girl to take to the store with me? Jade curled her fist in her sleep, and I kissed her pale skin. "Aren't you excited?" Clare asked, taking my silence as disappointment. I smiled. "Of course I am, baby. Have you taken a pregnancy test yet?" I asked. She shook her head and fear jotted through me. What if she wasn't pregnant? "Maybe we should go and get a pregnancy test." I suggested, trying to sound casual. Clare noticed though, and looked up at me. "I'm not sure I'm pregnant." Clare said her enthusiasm fading.

"E-Eli, I didn't really think that I would get pregnant so soon, I wanted some time between them. But, I don't feel pregnant. I convinced myself that I was pregnant, but now 'm not so sure." She looked so nervous when she said this; I walked around to the side of the bed as I refused to move Jade, and wrapped my arms around Clare's shoulders. "Clare, if you aren't pregnant, then you aren't. We'll wait for a while, as long as you want, until we start trying again. But I promise you we will have a baby. In the meantime," I said, pointing to the angel sleeping on our bed, "we still have Jade." Clare smiled and looked at me, with tears in her eyes. "I-I think we should just go off birth control and see what happens. Is that okay?" she asked me. I gently pressed my lips to hers and then pulled back. I nodded, running my hands through her cinnamon-colored curls. I put my face into her hair and inhaled deeply. The smell of apple orchards and cinnamon eased my mind a little. "You promise you're not mad at me?" Clare asked, her voice almost breaking. I laughed, startling her. Mad? How could I be mad at her? I kissed her again. "Clare, I love you. I could never be mad at you, whether you're pregnant or not. We still have Jade; she'll keep our hands full for awhile. I promise we will have another baby someday." As I said this, I laid Clare on the bed and rolled over Jade (I pushed myself over her, hovering above her, and then laid down on the other side of her, don't worry) and laid down. I held one of Clare's hands and I put on hand over Jade's back. Clare put her other hand on top of mine, and eventually, my whole family was asleep.

I woke up to find Clare gone, and Jade still fast asleep next to me. I smiled, and began to rub my baby girls back. She hummed in her sleep and I smiled. What was she dreaming about? I sighed, kissed the back of my daughters head and went off in search of Clare. I found her in the bathroom, a pharmacy bag on the floor, holding three pregnancy tests. It looked like she had been there for awhile and I stretched, yawning. Afternoon sunlight flowed through the window as the sun set. I looked down and sighed at the results. "Clare, you already suspected this. We will have a child, I promise." Clare looked up at me then, and I saw the tears that flooded her cheeks. "Why would God do this to me?" she said, disappointed. "I was really excited." She said, her breathing was shallow. I wrapped my arms around her, I hated seeing Clare cry. "Clare, we'll have a baby, I promise." I told her. She stopped crying, but looked sad. "I'm sorry Eli; my emotions are all over the map. I don't know what's wrong with me." Clare sighed and I held her, leaning up against the bathtub. We talked for awhile about how beautiful Jade was, when the she started crying in our room. Clare went in and got her and brought her back out. "She needs her diaper changed." Clare muttered. She kissed Jade's forehead and walked into her room. She put Jade on the changing table and wiped her. Then she scooped her up and took her into the kitchen. Here we go again. I got a slightly larger than average dish towel out of the hall closet and walked downstairs after Clare, as she was filling up the sink with warm water. We had a device that we would lay Jade on whenever we gave her baths in the tub, but Clare felt safer this way. I got a wash cloth and held Jade as the sink filled. I gently set her down in the warm water and Jade cooed.

She raised her fists and splashed me. Smart kid. I gently splashed her, making the water slide across her chest up to her neck and she made her wheezing giggle. Clare took the washcloth and gently washed off Jade's little arms and feet and I laughed as Jade squirmed. I held her head firmly, but gently, above water. Jade smiled at me and splashed me again. I grinned and took it. Then a brilliant idea struck me. "Hey, Clare." I said as Clare lathered her hands up with baby shampoo. "Maybe we should take her swimming, you know, when she's older. Let the kid have one sport to try." I said. I could see myself doing that. Cheering her on at swim meets, driving her to soccer games. I actually kind of wanted to have a sporty kid. Once Jade was out of her bath, I wrapped her up in her dish-towel sized towel. I laughed and took her upstairs as she tried to grab my ear. "Ow!" I said whenever she grabbed my ear. She pulled on it gently and I smiled. It seemed to calm Jade down immediately and I set her down on the changing table.

I kissed her tummy and blew raspberries on her tummy. Jade squealed with her wheezing laugh and I started to tickle her. I kissed her forehead and changed her diaper just as my phone rang. Caller ID read Adam. "What's up machismo?" I asked calmly, trying to put on Jade's one-piece. "Eli! Eli! Something's wrong with Nevaeh!"


	19. Hospitals again

**Eli's POV**

I had never heard Adam so terrified in my life. I could hear Fiona sobbing in the background and realized it was on speaker. "What's wrong, Adam?" I asked, getting scared. Jade looked at me, confused by my sudden mood change. What had happened to my godchild? Oh, yeah, Clare and I were Nevaeh's godparents by the way. "She's, she's shaking. Like, she's having a seizure or something!" Adam said. A seizure? But she was only a few weeks old. "This is normal, right? Do babies do this?" Adam said, and he sounded like he was crying. "No, they don't," I whispered. A seizure? My mind flashed back to Amy, I little girl I babysat once or twice. She started having seizures, and then was diagnosed with brain cancer. The tumor had caused the seizures, and she died a few weeks later. Please not Nevaeh. "Adam, where are you?" I asked. "On our way to the hospital, she just stopped shaking." He said, panicked.

"Me and Clare are on our way." I told him, hanging up. I scooped Jade up, who was still looking at me, disappointed that I wasn't tickling her. I put her into her carrier and locked her in. I grabbed a baby blanket and threw it over the top, so that way I wouldn't have to see her disappointed emerald eyes. "Clare!" I called as I walked down the steps. "Nevaeh had a seizure; Adam wants us to go to the hospital!" I said. "What?" Clare said, still drying her hands and draining out the sink from Jade's bath. "Nevaeh had a seizure, at least that's what Adam said. They want us over at the hospital." I said, pulling my car keys out of the back of my black skinny jeans. "Alright." Clare said. She was even paler than usual. I went outside and put Jade in her car seat. I pulled the blanket off the top of the carrier to find Jade drifting off to sleep. I ran around to Morty's driver's side and got in as Clare buckled her seat belt. I flipped the key in the ignition and Morty's engine roared to life. I back him out of the drive way and sped off towards the hospital. I looked over to see Clare praying for Nevaeh.

If anything happened to that child, Adam and Fiona would be shattered. I parked in a space in the parking lot and Clare was out in a second, getting Jade out of the car. She was so stressed she even forgot to but our two month old in the carrier, she just held her. We ran into the hospital. A nurse looked up as we walked in and I said "Adam and Nevaeh Torres." She paled and asked if we were family. "We're Nevaeh's godparents." I informed her and she nodded. She flipped her dark hair and led us down a few halls, into a room. There was Adam and Fiona. Fiona had tear tracks all down her cheeks, ruining her mascara. Adam had an arm wrapped around her, and Fiona was leaning up against him. They both looked up when we walked in and Fiona broke out of Adam's grasp and ran over to Clare, hugging her. Clare handed me Jade and hugged her back. "Is Nevaeh okay?" I asked Adam. He flinched and said "They're running a CAT scan now." He said. I almost gasped when I heard his voice and my grip tightened on Jade. Jade looked up at me, sleepy. _Was-going-on? _She asked with her eyes. If I thought Adam's voice had sounded bad on the phone, it sounded even worse now. It sounded like he had been lit on fire. I felt so terrible for him. He looked like Hell, his hair a mess and his eyes were puffy. And that to the bags under his eyes from lack of sleep and he looked terrible.

A nurse walked in, holding a bright-eyed Nevaeh. Fiona let go of Clare and ran over to hold her. She scooped her up and held her to her, rocking her back and forth quickly. "Don't ever, ever scare me like that again." She said her voice breaking. Adam stood and walked over to her wife and child. He put his hand over his baby's head and Nevaeh smiled up at him. A small smile broke out on Adam's face, a little bit of the normal Adam shined through. "What did you find?" he asked as he kissed his daughter's forehead. "Your daughter's scans are completely normal. This should never happen again. Did she have any recent head injuries?" the nurse asked, pulling out a clipboard. Adam shook his head and turned back to his baby. I smiled, thank God she was alright. Jade started to pull on my ear again and I kissed the side of her face. "It could have just been something random. Stress, low blood sugar, stuff like that. F it ever happens again, we'll put her on medication. Everyone gets a free pass to have one seizure in their lifetime. If she has another one, something is wrong." The nurse walked out and we sat there, holding our children.

**A/N Short, I know. I'm swamped with homework. REVIEW!**


	20. Birthday visits, and drinks

**Eli's POV**

***Three weeks later***

Jade was now three months old, as of today and I smiled as I lit the candle on the tiny cupcake. The cupcake was miniature, and the lone candle on top of it seemed like a mountain. Jade was in her high chair, looking at the flame with real interest. She tried to catch the flame in her hand, but I pulled the cupcake away. Jade's curls were flowing over her head now, just slightly longer than a few weeks ago. Her emerald eyes were bright with interest as I set the cup cake down on the tray of the high chair. Clare giggled at Jade's shocked expression. She looked like she was ready to worship the flame. Clare kissed the side of Jade's head and Jade swiveled her head around a little to look at her. Clare smiled proudly, running her hands through Jade's little curls. "Happy three month birthday, Jade." Clare said. Jade looked at us expectantly and me and Clare leaned over to blow out the candle. It was cheesy, I know. But Clare liked doing it, and somewhere deep down, I liked doing it to.

Clare pulled out a camera and took a picture of Jade. She insisted on taking a picture whenever Jade turned a month older, so that way we could look back at how she grew. I flinched. I didn't like thinking about her growing up. Jade tried to bite the candle, but I took it out of the cupcake. I took a little bit of the cupcake, a tiny, tiny speck, and fed it to her. We weren't allowed to give her solid foods yet. Jade barely even registered it. I smiled as I bit into the vanilla cupcake. "Grandma and Grandpa are coming over soon." Clare told Jade as she scooped her up. She cuddled Jade to her chest and looked at me with her blue eyes. She looked doubtful. I tensed, I didn't like it either. Helen had come over to see Jade whenever she was born, and had come by every once in a while, if only for a few minutes, to see Jade. Randal had never seen his granddaughter before. He hadn't even called Clare. But now, all of a sudden, they both wanted to come and see Jade.

"Let's go get ready, baby girl." I said, kissing Clare. God, I loved her kisses. My lips stiffened a few seconds later and I pulled back. "Clare…what about the religion thing? How are we going to tell your parents about our decision?" I asked. We had decided to raise Jade as whatever she wanted to be. She was going to be Agnostic, but whenever she was old enough to understand religion, she could choose for herself. Clare sighed, her eyes closed for a second. She buried her face in Jade's curls. "I don't know." I took Jade out of Clare's arms and took her upstairs. I had just set Clare down in her crib for a quick nap before her grandparents came when Clare's arms wrapped around my waist. I grinned. Clare only did this whenever she wanted, ah, satisfaction. I turned around and kissed her. Her lips tasted like raspberries and mint. Her arms braided themselves into my hair and she pressed up against me. She pulled me out of Jade's room and towards our bedroom. "Baby, are we going to have time before your parents get here?" I murmured into her skin as I pushed her up against the wall, roughly kissing her neck. "Who cares?" she said, pulling me onto the bed. Who was I to say no to her?

***An hour or two later***

"Shit!" I cursed, looking at our clock. Helen and Randal were going to be over here any second! Clare looked at me and gently pressed her lips to mine, calming me down. I smiled against her lips and wrapped my arms around her waist, trying to move the sheet that was blocking the view of her perfect body. She pulled away, wrapping the sheet tightly around her. "We don't have that much time." She said, her blue eyes glittering. "You are such a tease." I said, lying back on the pillows. I got up, flinging the blanket behind me. Clare's eyes did a quick evaluation of my body, and blushed. I smirked, "like what you see?" I asked. "Could you be anymore smug?" Clare asked me. "Absolutely!" I said. Clare grinned and dropped the sheet.

My mouth opened a little and I groaned. Clare had perfect curves, and her skin was so soft. I bit my bottom lip and concentrated on our dresser. Clare and I rummaged for clothes just as we heard Jade start to crying in her room. I sighed, pulling on boxers, black skinny jeans, a Black Veil Brides t-shirt, and black socks. Clare as pulling a tank top over her bra as left the room. I looked down at my outfit. Perfect for making a good impression. I rolled my eyes. Randal could go to Hell if he didn't like what I wore. I lifted Jade out of her crib and changed her diaper. "Clare, what are we dressing her in?" I called over my shoulder. Clare rushed into the room, and hunted around in the little dresser we had put next to her crib last week. She pulled out a very simple baby dress. It was pink, and Fiona had bought it. Clare took Jade out of the crib and pulled in over her. It was sleeveless, just a sundress. It wasn't really as feminine as Fiona liked, with poofy dresses and glitter, but it was alright. Clare was wearing loose jeans and a blue blouse. Just then the doorbell rang. Just wonderful.

I walked down the steps while Clare sat down on the couch with the baby. "Are you nervous?" she asked Jade, smoothing back one of her few curls. "Because I am." She said. Jade looked at her with those intelligent eyes, like she understood. She laid her head down on her mother's arm and tried to go to sleep. I opened the door to see Randal and Helen standing there. I smiled at them, trying not to show how furious at Randal I was. "Hey, Helen. Hello, Randal. Come in." I said, opening the door for them. Jade leaned up and began to play with Clare's earrings. Clare smiled, and it was almost like a Norman Rockwell painting. "Hello Eli. Clare!" Helen said, running over to hug Clare. "Oh my, look at how much she's grown!" Helen squealed, leaning down to kiss Jade's forehead. Clare smiled at her mother. "Isn't she getting so big? I never want her to grow up; I'd just wish she'd stay this way forever!" Clare said, and Jade soaked up the attention like a sponge would soak up water. Randal hesitantly stepped forward into the house, completely ignoring me. "So, that's the little one huh?" he said. His phone made a noise and he pulled it out of his pocket. He started texting and I wanted to punch him whenever I saw the look on Clare's face. Who did he think he was? Didn't he know how important this was to his daughter? He was meeting his grandchild for the first time, and he was too busy looking at his phone!

I gritted my teeth and then Clare looked like she would cry. I was so sick of this. "Randal, would you like to leave?" I asked patiently. "Because you seem to be more interested in your phone than you are in your granddaughter." Randal whirled around to face me. If he said one thing to me, after all the shit he's put Clare through, I'd kill him. He was practically putting Clare through Hell. Randal's face softened. "I guess you're right." He said, putting his phone down on the coffee table and went to go sit on the other side of Clare. _What? _Since when did Randal care? But Clare looked happy, so I smiled and watched as my daughter looked at her grandfather. "How old is she now?" Randal asked. "Three months as of today." I told him. He nodded. "She's very pretty." He said, gently putting his hand on Jade's little hand. "Of course, she has Clare for a mother." I explained. Clare smiled at me, blushing.

"Can I hold her?" Randal asked. Clare looked up at me for a second, and then very gently handed Randal our baby. Randal stood slowly, rocking Jade. "You're holding her wrong, Randal." Helen told him. Randal glared at her. "We're not married anymore, you can't tell me what to do anymore." He hissed. My eyes flashed to my baby. If Randal exploded, with Jade in his arms… "That's not what I'm saying Randal-"Helen said, but Randal cut her off. "Shut up, you stupid bitch." Clare and I both gasped, but Helen just held her ground. "Give me the baby." I asked Randal. He trust Jade at me, practically dropping her. I caught her, and Clare clasped her hands over her mouth. "You're not ever going to be good enough for my daughter." Randal hissed in my face. I smelled booze on his breath. Why the Hell didn't I notice it when he came in? Then again, he hadn't talked directly at any of us. "Randal, have you been drinking?" I asked. His eyes looked a little bloodshot, but the guy wasn't wasted.

"A little. Five beers." He said. I nodded, shock enveloping me. I had never remembered Randal condoning drinking. His father had been an alcoholic, and he would never chance becoming like him. I heard from Adam that if your parents were alcoholics, your rates of becoming one almost doubled. Did Randal have a problem? But judging from his face, it would be better not to mention it. "I'll drive you home, Randal." Helen said, leading him out of the door. "Bye, baby." He murmured, kissing Jade's forehead. Whenever they were gone, I sat down next to Clare. She took Jade out of my arms and hugged her. She kissed her head over and over. Then she leaned over and pressed her lips against mine. "Well, at least my close family isn't screwed up." She said. I kissed her and my baby. I held them both until Clare and Jade dozed off. But I stayed awake, thinking. What if Randal kept getting worse? Fiona had been so terrible with it. I put my doubts to rest and quickly dozed off with my family.

**A/N Review? I think I'm only going to write a few more chapters. Check out my other stories. **


	21. Another test

**A/N Sorry for the time gap, but I had to move things along. REVIEW! How many chapters you want, what kind of stories you want, etc. **

**Eli's POV**

***Sixteen months later* **

Randal was no longer allowed to see Jade until he admitted to his drinking problem. After almost dropping her, we weren't taking any chances. Clare had been mortified when her dad started to see a therapist about his drinking. Jade had just passed the 19 month mark, and Clare was acting strange, she yelled at me for no reason, and was eating a ton of food. I talked to Adam about it and whenever he suggested that she was pregnant, I brushed the idea aside. Me and Clare hadn't done anything in a while. Jade was getting bigger now, and was walking pretty well. It was fun to watch her try to navigate her hands and feet. Nevaeh came over for play-dates all the time, and Adam and Fiona were still trying to find a baby to adopt.

I was feeding Jade some baby food whenever Clare came down the steps. I had let her sleep in today, hoping it would help her mood. I had also made her breakfast, and the pancakes waited for her approval. "Wow." She said, looking at everything. The dishes were done, Jade was already dressed, and fed, and her food was already made. "Eli, thank you!" Clare said, twisting her cinnamon curls out of her face. I smiled. My Clare was back. She leaned over and kissed my forehead as I fed Jade another spoonful of what was supposed to be mashed strained carrots. I held the spoon and Jade leaned forward, opening her mouth. She bit down onto the spoon and held it there. She pulled back, the spoon still stuck firmly in-between her strawberry colored lips. "Give me the spoon back." I said, trying to be stern. Jade's eyes glittered with satisfaction.

When I finally did get the spoon back, Clare was done eating. I looked at Jade, who was being quiet today. She was trying to make words sound presentable, and it was really cute. I had already eaten, so I asked her what we were going to do for today. She just shrugged, and getting up and going back to the pan I had made the pancakes in. She pulled a carton of eggs out of the fridge, and mixing bowl. What was she doing? She pulled out four eggs and cracked them into the bowl. "Do you want some?" she asked me. I shook my head, staring at her. She couldn't eat all of that could she? "Okay, more for me." Clare said, putting in two more eggs. Holy Hell. She put the carton of eggs back in the fridge, threw out the shells, and began to stir the eggs with a spoon. She turned the fire on, and poured in the eggs. "Um… Clare, honey, you just ate three pancakes." I informed her. Jade, fascinated by what I was looking at it, turned her head to stare at her mother.

"I know." Clare said, "I'm just hungry, that's all." As she was saying this, she was pulling out sausage out of the fridge. How could she eat all of this? I looked up at her stunning blue eyes, and noticed the dark purplish crescents under them. She had been sleeping a lot lately, too. As she poured the cooked eggs onto her plate, the almost-burnt sausage beside it, I noticed her wrists. Swollen. Oh my God. She started shoving eggs into her mouth, as if she hadn't eaten in weeks. "Clare?" I said, once she'd finished. "What?" she asked, looking up at me. Her eyes glittered, and it amazed me every time I saw them. "Do you think that you should get a pregnancy test?" I asked. She stared at me like I was out of my mind. "Baby, I love you, but sometimes you drive me insane." She scooped Jade out of her high chair and kissed her. "Mammy!" Jade said, giggling. She was growing up so fast. "I don't feel…"she stopped then, putting one hand gently over her stomach. "Eli." She said suddenly, holding Jade out to me. I took her, holding her on my shoulder. "Clare? Are you alright?" I asked as Jade nuzzled her head into my neck.

She didn't answer me, but ran up the steps and into the bathroom. I raced up after her and she was sitting there, throwing up. Heaves racked her body as she threw up into the toilet. "Oh God, Clare." I said, racing over to her. I set Jade down on the tile floor and pulled Clare's curls out of her face. "Eli." She choked out between heaves. "I'm here, baby, I'm here." I said. After about ten minutes, she was finished. She rested her head on the toilet seat and flushed the toilet. I filled up a glass of water and she sloshed it around n her mouth. She cleaned her mouth out several times, and then brushed her teeth twice, polishing it off with a large dose of Listerine. She spit the Listerine out and turned to face me as I held a now-sleeping Jade. Wordlessly, she took Jade out of my hands and put h r down in her crib in her room.

Was Clare pregnant? She had said a few months ago that she waited more time between Jade and our next child. Was this enough time? Our last few months with Jade had been bliss, and would another baby just complicate things? Or would it make it better? Clare walked back in and wrapped her arms around my neck, putting her head on my chest. Wrapped my arms around her and whispered in a hoarse voice, "Still don't want to get a pregnancy test?" She shook her head and I leaned down to press my lips to her forehead. "If I'm pregnant, Jade would be almost two and a half whenever the baby is born. I think that's enough time, don't you?" She murmured, leaning her head up to kiss my face. I kissed her lips and sighed. "Yeah, I guess that's enough time." It would be great to have another baby around, especially now that Jade was getting so big. Clare leaned up and kissed me. "We have to go get a test. Eli, I'm so excited!" Clare sqeauled, practically jumping up and down. I stopped her. "In case there is a baby in there, we should be careful." I said. She nodded, and her eyes filled with tears. "Eli, this is great! This is perfect timing! Whenever the baby gets here, Jade will be able to understand that. Jade will have a little brother or sister to play with!" I smiled at her excitement. I loved her so much, I couldn't wait to have more kids.

***Back at home, with used tests***

Clare stared at the tests in awe, and was mimicking her. Oh my God. Clare had tears streaming down her face and I kissed them away. "It's okay, Clare. We'll all be okay." She nodded and I held her to me, still in shock. We had been so happy, so excited, now we were in shock. The doorbell rang downstairs and stood up. It was Adam and Fiona to bring Nevaeh over for a play-date. "C'mon, let's go." I told Clare. She nodded, and pressed her lips against mine. I scooped Jade out of her bed for nap time and dressed her in shorts and a little t shirt. "Dada! Lock!" she said, mispronouncing look. She pointed at her ceiling fan eagerly, something that had mesmerized her since she could talk. "Fan!" she crowed in delight. "Yeah, baby that's a fan." I said. "By the way, congratulations." I told her. She stared at me curiously with those big green eyes, surprised by the new word. I kissed her forehead and she giggled, wiping it away with the back of her hand. "Dada icky!" she said, giggling.

I took her downstairs to see Clare and Fiona talking excitedly, and Adam helping Nevaeh walk. "Hey machismo." I said, grinning. I kissed Jade's forehead again, producing another fit of giggles. I continued, and told him the big news while rubbing Jade's back. "Guess who's going to be a baby daddy again?"


	22. OMG

**Eli's POV**

Adam's voice mirrored the shock I felt. Another baby. Another beautiful, incredible child to play with. I sighed. Another college fund to pay for, but so worth it. I rocked Jade as Adam stared at me in shock. "Are you serious?" he asked me. I nodded as Jade pulled my hair. I turned to look at her. "You're going to have a little brother or sister." I told her. She looked confused, and I knew she wouldn't understand that for a while. Oh well. Fiona was hugging Clare, and touching her stomach. I kissed Jade's forehead as she demanded my attention. I gently put her down on the floor and played with the wide variety of toys that Nevaeh had brought over. Jade squealed with delight as a small ring was placed in front of her. This was how kids were supposed to learn about size, placing it on a stick. Instead, she learned about taste and bit into the plastic. Wonderful.

We all talked as our daughters played on the floor. "When's you doctor's appointment?" Fiona asked us. I grinned. "I'll make one right now." I said, getting up and calling Dr. Fieldsman.

"Hello, Dr. Fieldsman's office. How can I help you?" the receptionist asked.

"I'd like to schedule an appointment for my wife as soon as possible. We think she's pregnant."

"Your name, address, and insurance information please." After giving her what she needed, we had an appointment in two hours. I smiled as I sat down with Clare. Fiona and Clare were discussing names. "If it's a boy, Christopher is nice." Fiona said. Clare nodded, and I managed to tune them out. Me and Adam began to talk about our daughters and the time flew by.

***In the waiting room at Dr. Fieldsman's office***

I held Jade in my arms, reading her a book. Clare looked down nervously at the bump emerging from her stomach. I leaned over and kissed her cheek. "It'll be okay, blue eyes." I told her. She smiled and rested her head on my shoulder. Jade roughly pulled my hair again and I turned back to the book. "The little bunny was very sad. He wanted to go home. So the little bunny hopped back through the forest…" I said, rubbing Jade's back. I was nervous. Another baby to keep Jade company. I played with Jade's dark curls and Clare smiled at us. "You are such a great dad." She said, stroking the side of my face. I smiled, and kissed her, spreading her lips apart with my tongue. She kissed me back, our tongues intertwining whenever Jade pulled my hair again. "Mammy and Dada icky!" she squealed. I glared at her, almost mad at her for interrupting our kiss. I leaned over and placed a huge kiss on her forehead. "There. Now you're icky to." I said triumphantly.

"Mr. and Mrs. Goldsworthy?" the receptionist called. Clare and I stood and followed the receptionist into a room. Clare sat up on the paper covered table and held Jade. Jade liked me, I knew that. But her mother was who she really liked. Jade curled up with her mother and was asleep in a matter of seconds. This was an old game of hers. She would pretend that she was asleep, and then try to scare us. Our doctor walked into the room and Clare smiled. "Hello Eli, Clare. And Jade, of course." He said, gesturing to my little girl. "Alright, Clare." The doctor said, sitting down on the chair and opening his folder. "It seems that you think that you're pregnant again. Did you take any pregnancy tests?" he asked. Clare nodded, her cinnamon curls bouncing. "Yeah, three, all of them were positive." Clare said. The doctor nodded and brought a needle out. "We're going to take another blood test Clare, just like we did when you were pregnant with Jade." Clare winced, and squeezed my hand in a vice grip as the doctor pressed the needle into her pale skin.

Me and Clare sat in silence for a few moments until the doctor came back. We were both very nervous. The doctor came back in and smiled at us. "Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Goldsworthy, you are going to have a child. You are about four months along." Wow. Just four months? I looked back at Clare's stomach, at the huge bulge that was there. She looked at least six months pregnant. Clare had been wearing baggy clothes, and she thought she had just been gaining weight. But she was really big. "You can hear the heartbeat today." The doctor said. Clare had tears of joy running down her face, and nodded eagerly. We were going to have another child! The doctor pulled his stethoscope out and Clare pulled her shirt up. I wanted to kiss her, especially her body, but I controlled my urges. He placed the stethoscope on Clare's tummy as Clare handed Jade to me. Her put the stethoscope in his ears and listened intently. "That's strange." The doctor said.

"What's strange?" Clare and I said at the same time, panic lacing our voices. "Well, there's something very odd about this heartbeat." The doctor said. "Very, very odd. It seems to be double or triple the rate of a normal heart beat for a growing baby." Clare looked so scared and I felt so much fear for our baby. "Is the baby alright?" I asked, terrified. The doctor looked confused. "I'm not sure, we should do a sonogram." He replied. A few moments later, they were spreading cold gel on Clare's pregnant belly. The screen was tilted towards the doctor. "Why can't we see?" I asked. The doctor looked at us sadly "Just in case there is something wrong, you don't want those images in your head." Clare was crying slightly and I rubbed her back. Jade pulled my hair, but I was so numb I barely felt it. If our baby wasn't okay…I don't know what I'd do. An image had obviously appeared on the screen and the doctor sighed in relief, even letting out a little laugh.

"No wonder that heartbeat was strange." The doctor said, chuckling to himself. I squeezed Clare's hand as the doctor turned the screen towards us. Clare and I both gasped and Clare sobbed and laughed at the same time as I stared at the screen in shock. Clare scooped up Jade and kissed her face happily. "Oh my God." Clare said, laughing. I stared in disbelief and said the only word on my mind. "Twins?"

**A/N Review, please! **


	23. Babies, Arguments, and Makeups

**Eli's POV**

Twins? _Twins? TWINS? _I looked at the two angels on the screen and my jaw dropped. Clare placed her hands over her mouth. Oh my God, two babies. "Unfortunately we can't tell the genders yet. But you are most definitely having twins. That was the irregularity in the heart beat; it was because I was hearing two heartbeats. "So, nothing's wrong?" I barely managed to whisper. The doctor shook his head and we stared at our babies on the screen. I looked at Clare's stomach, then back at the screen. Clare had tears streaming down her pale perfect cheeks. Jade hugged me roughly and I looked down at her. She pointed at the screen, than at Clare's stomach. She looked confused, but I nodded. I knew she had made the connection. I kissed her forehead and looked back at the screen with my jaw still unhinged. "I'll give you two a moment. Just keep the stick there and you can still see them." He said, pointing to the tool resting on Clare's belly. He left the room and Clare looked at me.

I leaned down and kissed her, and then I kissed her tummy. The cream stuff was terrible, but I wiped it off my lips. I stared back at my children on the screen. Clare, Jade and I watched my children for almost half an hour before the doctor came back. "How many prints do you want of these?" he said, gesturing to the screen. "Nine." I said. Clare looked at me, surprised. "That many?" she asked. I nodded. "One for Alli, Fiona and Adam, Helen, Randal, Cece, Bullfrog, One for home, one spare, and one for Jade." I explained. Jade was still looking back and forth between the screen and Clare's stomach. The doctor quickly left the room again and I kissed Clare lovingly. "I can't believe this." Clare said, awestruck. "This is so incredible."

"We have to tell our parents, of course." I said my brain spinning. The doctor came back and gave us our prints, and I stared at them the whole time I walked out of the office and back to Morty.

***Back at home***

Clare and I were arguing. We had never fought like this before. "I'm so sick of you using violence to solve your problems Eli! God, have you changed at all since high school?" Clare yelled at me. We had gone shopping for things for the babies, and we bumped into Fitz, who had 'accidentally' knocked over a display and almost hit Jade. Me and Fitz got into an argument right there in the store, and I punched him whenever he called Clare a slut for getting pregnant again. "I was just defending your honor, Clare. It's kind of my job!" I yelled back at her. Clare's cheeks flamed and her eyes blazed. I had never seen Clare this mad. I should just apologize, but I was sick of this. "Your _job? _It's not your job, Eli! It's your _job _to set a good example for your daughter! Do you really want Jade to see that and that it's okay because _Daddy _does it? Are those really the messages you want to send your one year old?" Me and Clare argued back and forth for about an hour whenever we heard Jade's sobs. We both looked at the same time to see Jade sitting there at the top of the steps, holding her stuffed tiger and watching us fight. Apparently the little acrobat had managed to get out of her crib and crawl over here. Jade's chest heaved and she shuddered, sobbing harder. My heart shattered whenever I saw that. "OH my God, baby girl." I said, running over to her, Clare right on my heels. I held her to me and rocked her back and forth gently. Jade screamed against my chest and I kissed her over and over. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get you upset, baby. It's okay, Daddy's here." I soothed, holding her to me. I looked up at Clare and our eyes met. "I'm sorry." I said, this time directed at my wife. I kissed Jade's forehead as Clare nodded, but looked very upset.

I knew what she wanted. I handed Jade to Clare and Clare rubbed her back. "It's okay." She soothed the baby. Clare and I were both touching her, rubbing her body. Jade calmed down very quickly after I started to massage her shoulders. Clare and I walked upstairs and laid down on our bed. Clare put Jade across my chest and I massaged my baby's back. Jade stared to coo and Clare smiled, kissing Jade's head. Then she suddenly leaned over and kissed me roughly on the lips. Tears stung my eyes. I loved them so much, how could I ever have screamed at Clare? I pulled Clare's hand to my lips and kissed it. "Clare, I love you so much. I'm so sorry." Clare didn't say anything, just kissed my cheek and put her head onto my shoulder with Jade on my chest. We held our daughter until Jade drifted off to sleep, and then slowly, I stood. I carried Jade to her room and put her down gently into her crib. When I walked back into our bedroom, Clare was lying across the bed, smiling shyly. "Elijah…" she murmured. "We need to talk." I sat down next to her and Clare kissed me fiercely. What the hell? I thought she was mad at me! "Clare?" I asked when she finally pulled her lips off of mine. "What's this about?" Clare kissed me again and murmured "I love you Eli. I feel really bad about what I said. I think I would have done the same thing to Fitz. I don't know if it's just pregnancy hormones, but I totally understand what Jenna meant. You feel really…sexy, sometimes, whenever you're pregnant."

I gently pushed Clare down and the bed and kissed her gently. "Calm down, Clare. We'll get there." I said as she fumbled with my belt. I slowly pulled her shirt over her head, kissing her stomach. I moved up to her neck and gently kissed her face and trailed kissed down to her stomach again. I kissed my way down to the elastic strap of her panties and pulled them off with my teeth. The last thing I remember before incredible bliss was Clare kissing me, telling me to be gentle and that she loved me.

**A/N Please review! Reviews really make my day guys. I will update at least three of my stories next week, I'm just so busy. I promise, more chapters are coming! Thank you so much to all those great people who review. **


	24. Photographs

**A/N Only a few chapters left guys! I'm going to do a series of one-shots about Clare, Eli and their kids. Review! I'm working on Marry Me and Perfect Pregnancy and both should be updated by Tuesday at the latest! What do you think of the time jump?**

**Eli's POV**

***16 months later***

I helped my son crawl over to his mother. Clare laughed, scooping Ethan up and kissing his face. Ethan was 11 months and he was incredible. He was very fast when it came to crawling, and was walking a little and he looked just like me. He had Clare's blue eyes, but that was where the resemblance stopped. He had my hair, face, everything. He had Clare's pale skin, too. Jade walked down the steps. She had just turned three, and my God she was intelligent. She could speak full sentences and read the Harry Potter series already. She was holding a bundle to her chest and I knew what it was immediately. "Hey, baby girl, what did I tell you about picking her up without telling me or Mommy?" I said, standing up, holding Elliot to my chest. I sighed, placing Ethan's identical twin on the couch next to him and walked over to Jade. "Honey, you can't do this without telling us." I said, taking Annika out of Jade's arms.

Jade's long dark hair flowed to her waist and her petite frame was folded in a princess nightgown. "But Daddy I want to hold her!" She said. I sighed. Jade always wanted to hold her baby sister. After the twins were born, in one night of incredible passion, Annika was conceived. Me and Clare discovered something wonderful after that: birth control. We didn't regret Annika, we loved her a lot. I would never forget the day she was born.

*Flashback*

"_Oh my God, Eli!" Clare gasped from the passenger seat, holding her stomach. No, no, not now. It was pouring down rain, furious raindrops hitting Morty's windshield. Another boom of thunder roared as the sky lit up with lightning. Jade screamed in the backseat, and our eight month old twins were squirming in their car seats. "Daddy!" Jade screamed from the back seat. "What's wrong with Mommy?"Clare cried as a contraction rocked through her body. But she was only seven months pregnant! "Eli, I'm going to have the baby!" Clare screamed. I hit the accelerator and flew towards the hospital. I slowed down, scared of Morty sliding in the rain. I pulled into the hospital where all of our children had been born as Clare screamed again, another contraction rocking her body. "Eli, the baby is coming right now!" she said, her pale face covered in sweat, her hair plastered to her forehead. I put Morty in park and ran over to the passenger side, calling for a doctor. Jade had taken off her seatbelt and was looking over the top of the seat at her mother. "Daddy? Daddy? What's wrong with Mommy? What's wrong, Daddy?" she said, sobbing. A doctor and two nurses ran out into the rain; bring a stretcher along with them. But it was too late. I lifted Clare's dress and hastily removed her panties. "ELI!" Clare screamed as the baby started crowning. _

_Adrenaline shoot through my blood and I knew what to do. I had delivered three children already. I positioned my hands as Clare pushed again. I saw my baby's head and relief shot through me. It was almost over. A nurse ran up behind me, but I was already ready. "Push, Clare!" I yelled, surprisingly calm. Clare screamed again as Jade tried to get out of Morty. A doctor ran up behind me just as my second baby girl slipped into my arms. I looked down at my second daughter; Annika Darcy Goldsworthy. _

***End flashback***

I smiled at the memory. I had delivered Ethan Adam Goldsworthy and Elliot Mason Goldsworthy too. Those had been the best days of my life, other than marrying Clare. Fiona walked in with Adam and their three children. Nevaeh, of course, followed quickly after by Nova and Siah. Yes, Siah. Sigh-ah, Adam had tried to explain to me whenever I heard her name. Adam took Annika from me, and brushed her cinnamon curls out of her face. Annika had my green eyes and Clare's hair, and all the other features were identical to her sisters. Siah was still a newborn, but Nova was a month younger than the twins. Our big house was crowded, but comfortable. Nova stumbled over to Elliot and sat next to him and Clare. They were both looking down at the book the Clare was reading to our sons. When they got to the part where the frog got kissed by the princess, a giggling Nova kissed Elliot. Everyone laughed as Elliot turned beet red and stared at Nova in awe. "I wouldn't be surprised if they ended up together," Adam said. I agreed with him and we watched our children play.

***An hour later***

Me and Clare were lying in bed, looking through photos. Annika was in her crib in Jade's old nursery, Elliot and Ethan were fast asleep in bed, and Jade had fallen asleep in her princess bed. Clare laughed as she saw the picture of Jade's second birthday, with cake smeared all over her face. Another showed Nova and Elliot right next to each other as newborns, turned towards each other. "Elliot has a crush." Clare said, smiling. "I think we can wait awhile to call the wedding planners Clare." I said, laughing. I looked at another photograph of Jade outside with me, looking under a rock for bugs. Another of me and Jade sled riding. Jade and me at the pool, me helping her doggie paddle. One of Jade holding Annika right after she was born. Another of Clare, looking exhausted, holding the twins right after their birth. Our engagement party, our wedding reception, Clare's pregnant belly when she was carrying Jade. We flipped through the photographs, laughing, and went to the last picture. I smiled gently as Clare gasped. It was one from when we were in high school. Alli had taken it when we weren't looking, to busy being distracted by each other. The picture was of me and Clare standing in front of Morty, holding each other, eyes closed, our lips centimeters from each others. I smiled, looking down at all the photos, and then looking down at me and Clare from high school.

"That was where it all began." Clare said, pointing to the one from when we were just dating. I smiled at the flood of memories. I looked won at the photos strewn over our bed and murmured "Yeah." I pressed my lips to Clare's forehead and picked up a picture of all of us. Me and Clare each had a twin in our lap. Jade was in the center, holding Annika. Then I pictured up the picture of me and Clare at the beginning. After all the pictures were put away Clare and I laid in our bed, and Clare was fast asleep. My mind was still on the pictures though. All the pictures of our past, and all the pictures that would be there with them. The pictures of our very long future ahead of us. I smiled and fell asleep, dreaming of my family.

**A/N Good? Bad? The one shot series of Eli, Clare and the kids? Any other story suggestions? Should I add more chapters to this story? Please review! I love all of my reviewers! Check out my other stories! **


	25. Chapter 25

Hello everyone! I have ecided to terminated this account and reinvent myself with a new account; poisoncadence. Check to see if your favorite story is being continued on that account, and check out the newest story! Thank you all so much!


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